Char Narayan: From the Rubble

After years of extensive reconstruction work following a devastating April 2015 earthquake, conservation work at the beloved Char Narayan Temple in the Kathmandu Valley of Nepal is finally complete. The earthquake was followed by hundreds of aftershocks in the subsequent weeks, and had a direct impact on a third of the country’s population, stimulating an international humanitarian response. World Monuments Fund included the Cultural Heritage Sites of Nepal on the 2016 World Monuments Watch to call attention to the challenges faced by the country as it sought to recover.

Following the 2016 Watch, and with support from American Express, WMF partnered with the Kathmandu Valley Preservation Trust to restore Char Narayan Temple. This slideshow documents how in using salvaged materials, the temple was reconstructed so a community could again worship in their beloved space and find resilience in the face of destruction.