Hanuman Dhoka Durbar Square

0ne of three Durbar (royal palace) Squares in the Kathmandu Valley in Nepal, all of which are UNESCO World Heritage Sites. Kathmandu Valley is famous worldwide for Nepalese art architecture & cultural heritage. Kathmandu valley can also be called the open museum of art and architecture whether it be in wood, stone or metal. Situated in the heart of Kathmandu, Nepal's capital. it was the royal residence of the Mall kings. The establishment of the statue of Hanuman (Monkey God devotee of Lord Ram) at the main entrance was in 792 Nepali Era (1729 B.S.) by king Pratap Malla, the name of the palace came to be Hanumandokha durbar since then. After, Prithivi Narayan Shah concurred Kathmandu valley in 1825 B.S. he had the Basantapur Durbar built & the place was also reffered as Basantapur Durbar Square.

From the incriptions in Hanuman Dokha, it is evident that the buildings, monuments & temples were constructed from the reign of King Ratna Malla to His Majesty Prithivi Narayan Shah. The stone inscription from the time of Amshuverma on the Degu Taleju of Hanuman Dokha mentions the renovation of the Lichhavi king's old place. This indicates the existence of Lichhavi era in the area.

Time and again the temples and the palaces in the square have gone through reconstruction after being damaged by natural causes or neglect. Presently there are less than ten quadrangles (a four-sided plane figure ) in the square. The temples are being preserved as national heritage sites and the palace is being used as a museum.

There is a 17th century stone inscription in the Hanuman Dhoka that is set on the wall of the palace with writings in 15 languages by King Jaya Pratap Malla. It is believed that if anybody deciphers this entire inscription, the milk would flow from the spout, which lies just below the in-scripted stone wall. Some people say that the inscription contains coded directions to a treasure King Pratap Malla has buried beneath Mohan Chowk of Durbar Square.

The major Interesting things to see here are "Kumari (The Living Goddess) Gar" "Kastha Mandap"Maru Ganesh (Ashok Vinayak), Mahadev Temple, Shiva Parvati Temple, Bhagwati Temple, Old palace, Saraswoti temple, Krishna Octangular Temple, Big drums, Kal Bhairav, Jagannath Temple, Mahendreswor Temple, Cbyasin Dega, Basantapur Durbar, Tago Gan(Big Bell), Hanuman Statue, Jagannath Temple, Degutalle Temple, Maju Dega, Singha Sattal, Trilokya Mohan Narayan, Gaddi Baithbak and Taleju Temple etc..

The following are the glimpse of Hanuman Dhoka Durbar Square.