Alchi
Subtitle: Ladakh's hidden Buddhist sanctuary : the Sumtsek
By: Roger Goepper ; photography by Jaroslav Poncar ; with contributions by Robert Linrothe and Karl Dasser.
Contributors: Poncar, Jaroslav.; Linrothe, Robert N., 1951-; Dasser, Karl.
Publisher: Shambhala; Distributed in the U.S. by Random House
Published: 1996
Place of publication: Boston; [New York]
Language: eng
Number of pages: 286
Subjects: Gsum-rtsegs (Temple : Alchi Gömpa, India); Temples, Buddhist -- India -- Alchi Gömpa; Mural painting and decoration, Buddhist -- India -- Alchi Gömpa; Mural painting and decoration -- India -- Alchi Gömpa; Alchi Gömpa (India) -- Buildings, structures, etc
Description: On the south bank of the Indus in Ladakh, facing a great trade and invasion route to the north, lies Alchi, a repository of magnificent Buddhist wall paintings and clay sculptures that have survived for over eight hundred years. This sumptuously illustrated book details the most impressive of the temples within the complex, the Sumtsek Three-Tiered Temple.

The building itself is an impressive mixture of Tibetan and Kashmiri elements, which display some central Asian antecedents. The fresh and colorful wall paintings, in a sophisticated kashmiri style, appear to be a transposition of techniques intended for miniatures onto walls. The masterly vision of the creators of the Sumtsek has melded a profusion of teachings, artistic formats, structural possibilities and the demands of a donor's personal vision, into a unified sanctuary.
Notes: Includes bibliographical references (p. 277-282) and indexes.
"Published in association with Orientstiftung zur Förderung der Ostasiatischen Kunst Cologne."