page_title: Shwezigon Pagoda
section_title: History
hierarchical_section_title: Shwezigon Pagoda / History
caption_attribution_description: English: The Shwezigon Pagoda at Pagan/Bagan 1855. This is one of very first photographs of Pagan, taken by the English photographer Linnaeus Tripe who was part of the embassy from Governor-General of India to the Court of Ava.
context_page_description: The Shwezigon Pagoda or Shwezigon Paya is a Buddhist stupa located in Nyaung-U, Myanmar. A prototype of Burmese stupas, it consists of a circular gold leaf-gilded stupa surrounded by smaller temples and shrines. Construction of the Shwezigon Pagoda began during the reign of King Anawrahta, the founder of the Pagan Empire, in 1059–1060 and was completed in 1102, during the reign of his son King Kyansittha. Over the centuries the pagoda had been damaged by many earthquakes and other natural calamities, and has been refurbished several times. In recent renovations it has been covered by more than 30,000 copper plates. However, the lowest level terraces have remained as they were.
  This pagoda, a Buddhist religious place, is believed to enshrine a bone and tooth of Gautama Buddha. The pagoda is in the form of a cone formed by five square terraces with a central solid core. There are footprints below the four standing Buddha statues here. Jataka legends are depicted on glazed terra-cotta tiles set into three rectangular terraces. At the entrance of the pagoda there are large statues of guardians of the temple.
context_section_description: Chronicles of the Kings of Burma have attributed that King Anawrahta (r. 1044–77) initiated its construction during 1059–1060. According to legend, Anawrahta selected the site for building this pagoda by sending a white elephant mounted with a frontal bone relic of the Buddha to roam freely with the declaration that wherever the elephant stopped would be the site for building the pagoda. The elephant finally stopped over a dune which was chosen as the site for erecting the pagoda, and hence the name Shwezigon pagoda meaning "golden pagoda on a dune" in Burmese. Pagoda means "stupa" or "zedi."
  The pagoda was then completed by his son King Kyansittha (r.1084–1112/13). While its lower terraces were built by Anawrahta, the balance structure is credited to Kyansittha. Its final completion date is 1086 and the footprints below the four standing Buddha statues here are also believed to be of the same period. The pagoda is a replica of the pyramidal Mahabodhi Temple at Bodh Gaya, the location of Buddha's illuminating realisation in India.
  The pagoda has been damaged by earthquakes and other natural calamities over the centuries, and has been refurbished from time to time. A notable renovation was carried out by King Bayinnaung (r. 1550–1581) during late 16th century. In the 1975 earthquake there was considerable damage to the spire and the dome necessitating large renovation. It is now substantially strengthened with covering of more than 30,000 copper plates, which were donated by local and international devotees; gilding of the dome has been done during 1983–1984 and again in recent times. However, the pagoda's bottom level terraces have remained mostly in their original form.
caption: Shwezigon Pagoda in 1855
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