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Since 1972, Shwedagon Pagoda has been carrying out sporadic maintenance work. The basic operation is to use cement grout to repair cracks caused by water ingress, or to strengthen the wall to prevent earthquakes, Natural disasters such as landslides sometimes add infrastructure such as groundwater resources monitoring systems to the Shwedagon Pagoda to ensure the safety of water in the scenic area.

More importantly, in order to maintain the beauty of the outer layer of Shwedagon Pagoda, maintenance personnel will renovate its appearance every 4 or 5 years.

Each maintenance is a big project (Picture: vinai chunkhajorn /shutterstock)

The last major renovation took place from the end of 2018 to the middle of 2019. Before the renovation, the Alliance Ministry of Religious Affairs and Culture held a meeting on renovation planning, and then implemented a series of gold leaf removal, testing, fundraising, and reinstallation with relevant Buddhist organizations. Hundreds of people were busy with 8 After more than a few months, a brand new Shwedagon Pagoda was presented to the world again after completion.

The Golden Pagoda is a protected cultural relic, and the maintenance process requires more care (Picture: Pinterest)

At the completion blessing ceremony in June 2019, 108 high-ranking monks presided over the ceremony, and according to Buddhist etiquette and traditional customs, they brought their followers to worship the Buddha and pray for blessings. Hope the future of Shwedagon Pagoda will be smooth sailing.

In this way, the entire repair process can be considered a beginning and an end.

Now, the gold foil used in the renovation of Shwedagon Pagoda is domestic gold foil with a shelf life of more than 100 years.There are 22,167 thick gold foils and 18,375 thin gold foils in total, worth more than 34 billion kyats(about 170 million yuan).

Although Shwedagon Pagoda drives part of the tourism economy in Myanmar, it costs a lot to refurbish the Golden Pagoda (Photo: gnomeandi / Shutterstock)

Perhaps it is realized that such an expensive repair project is always unrealistic to rely on external donations. Recently, a small gold factory is being built near the Shwedagon Pagoda to help produce and provide the gold needed for the repair. But it is not yet known when the plant will be completed.

Compared with regular repairs, a more permanent solution may be to find a way to make the skin of Shwedagon Pagoda more “stable”. For this, even the international community is helping.

Since the end of November last year, materials scientists in Brussels, Belgium have participated in the study of how to make the dome more resistant to the temperature and humidity of Myanmar, in order to find a better way to extend the life of the gold foil. Of course, the application significance of this kind of research is not limited to the Shwedagon Pagoda. After all, there are many gilded parts in many modern buildings.

Professor Herman is a well-known expert in material corrosion. If the research can get effective results, it will be a breakthrough in the corrosion prevention of gold materials. (Picture: https://www.surfgroup.be/)

In the laboratory, the researchers used the same material as the top surface of the Shwedagon Pagoda to make a gold plate, and exposed it to the same humidity, temperature, salinity and ultraviolet levels as the Shwedagon Pagoda. Hope Compare the aging process of the gold plate with a real sample to understand the mechanism behind this degradation.

However, the outbreak of new coronary pneumonia brought this project to an abrupt end. Researchers in Brussels received samples taken from the top of the Shwedagon Pagoda in mid-February, but the laboratory had to be closed due to the epidemic in early March. Since then, the exchanges and cooperation between the two countries have been difficult, and there is a high probability of project planning. It is also difficult to achieve as expected.

I hope that there will be a solution as soon as possible so that the Shwedagon Pagoda can maintain its golden status for a long time (Photo: dreamloveyou / Shutterstock.com)

Now, the Shwedagon Pagoda, which was closed due to the epidemic in the past few months, has been opened for sightseeing in early August, but vendors are still restricted from operating.

After the epidemic is over, friends who have the opportunity to go to Myanmar may wish to feel the beauty of its money.

References:

1.https://tripanthropologist.com/myanmars-shwedagon-pagoda-the-best-pagoda-in-myanmar/

2.https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shwedagon_Pagoda#History

3.https://eos.org/articles/a-golden-opportunity-to-save-shwedagon-pagodas-acclaimed-dome

4.”A Brief History of Yangon” in Yangon & Shwedagon Pagoda: Other Places Travel Guide.

5.https://www.mmtimes.com/news/iconic-shwedagon-pagoda-gets-facelift.html

630 million yuan This time the renovation of the Shwedagon Pagoda in Yangon used so much gold! Myanmar Golden Phoenix Chinese Newspaper

*The content of this article is provided by the author and does not represent the position of the Earth Knowledge Bureau

This article is from WeChat official account:Earth Knowledge Bureau (ID: diqiuzhishiju), Author: yoghurt not foam, drawing: Sun Green, proofreading: cat Stewart, Editor: Yakult