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Diary entry by Gertrude Bell

Reference code
GB/2/8/2/2/28
Creator
Bell, Gertrude Margaret Lowthian
Creation Date
Extent and medium
1 entry, paper
Language
English
Location
Coordinates

21.177252, 94.9247074

Sat 28. [28 February 1903] H [Hugo] woke me from a sound sleep at
5.50. We jumped up and had breakfast. Our bullock cart arrived and
we set off at 7 to Pagahn [Pagan]. Right through the village and past
the big gold pagoda Shwezegon and then on by a sandy road the
whole way lined with ruined image houses and pagodas. They make
everything of brick covered with stucco so that when they begin to fall
to bits they don't look nice. It's funny to see a large hippogryph with a
tree growing out of his back. At last we came to a large pagoda and
stopped while we went up to it. The stucco had been on in elaborate
patterns but most of it had dropped off. Inside the big porch there was
an immense Buddha. We climbed up a broken stair onto the next
grass grown storey and had a fine view all over Pagahn, countless
pagodas, a few monasteries and the big curve of the river round it all;
beyond some low hills with white pagodas on them. The pagodas
that are kept in repair are white. We went on and stopped at the
Ananda which is very big. A teak passage leads to it and there are a
lot of bells outside. It has 4 porches and a huge standing figure of one
of the 4 Buddhas of our era in each. The light falls from above onto
their faces. Sidhartha is much the most gorgeous. He has a
background of glass mosaic. In the passage there are countless
Buddhas in niches. We went on to the Thapinyu which has only one
big shrine up on the top. Here we found the view and the air so
delicious that we sent for our bullock cart and had tiffin. Then I walked
down in the hot sun to the Bodhi, which is supposed to be on the
model of Gaya, and so into the village. By the river I heard cymbals,
so I went down and found a big raft with a life size paper and bamboo
elephant on it and 2 little elephants behind and one in front. The
whole decorated with bamboo and paper streamers and white
umbrellas and flowers. All the village was watching the preparations.
I heard after that it wd be floated down to the sea. In the village I saw
all the processes of lacquer making. Then I went on to the Ananda
monasteries where I made friends with an old pohngyee over
photography and found a young one who spoke English a little. They
asked me in and gave me a sweet brown stuff to eat. I went away and
fetched H and we both came back and established ourselves under
the carved teak roofs on bamboo matted floors. I was of no account
after H arrived. They examined his watch and offered him 15 rupees
for it. We had a long discussion as to ages and H tried to learn the
unpronouncable Burmese words. We also discussed the monastic
life as far as our friend's small supply of English allowed. When H
asked what they did they replied with conviction "Nothing." One was
sewing a silk embroidery to wrap up one of their books in. We made
our friend read us a sentence in Pali which I fancy he couldn't
understand. Then we saw the chapel room with a shrine and an
image of Buddha in it. Also fine old gold lacquer boxes and a variety
of European bottles - with offerings I imagine. There were two lovely
triangular gongs. I photographed groups and the little monk took us
into an old square pagoda or image house, where we found a 75 year
old monk asleep on a charpoy, but he woke up and seemed
delighted to see us. It was all frescoed inside, very old paintings
apparently court and battle scenes. So we took our leave - the
monks enjoyed our visit awfully. They laughed till their yellow robes
fell off their bare shoulders. Jolted back to Nyaungu and got in soon
after tea. Had tea, read and finished La Mort des Dieux and wrote to
Uncle George. There's a boring begging dog here. [Written at top of
second page of entry:] There were wrecks of some of Theebaw's
boats, 2, just above the landing stage at Nyaungu. H. ran one[?]
ashore - I think they were being chased by us.

IIIF Manifest
https://pageturners.ncl.ac.uk/adapter/api/iiif/https%3A%2F%2Fcdm21051.contentdm.oclc.org%2Fiiif%2Finfo%2Fp21051coll46%2F1120%2Fmanifest.json?showOnlyPages=238-241