Conservation Project - Sumda Chun, India

The monastery (gonpa) of Sumda Chun is one of the most important surviving early Tibetan Buddhist temples of the Ladakh region of northern India. Located at 12,700 feet above sea level in a remote part of the Himalayas, the site was listed on the 2006 World Monuments Watch to highlight the threats that are typical of most early period temples in Ladakh. Increased rainfall in the region has caused failures to the historic roofing systems originally built for an arid climate and thereby damaged the interior decorative features they shelter. WMF provided funding and project management support to a four-year program with the preparation of a site survey; conditions mapping of the temple structure, wall paintings, and sculptures; provisional repairs to the leaking mud roof; and the preparation of a conservation plan to guide all future work. This video explains the work carried out in 2008, when the restoration of the roof and repairs of the vertical cracks in the exterior walls rendered the building watertight and structurally sound. Learn more: http://www.wmf.org/project/sumda-chun-monastery