TSAPARANG (Troglodyte settlement of)
31.463900,79.429200
Description
Altogether 800 man-made rock-cut chambers, 300 of which are still in good condition, cover a total ground space of 180'000 square metres. They were dug into the north-eastern flank of the 300 m high hill of Tsaparang (note 1), which was the winter palace for the kings of Guge (842 to 1630). Several caves in the hillock are interconnected and a subterranean passage was dug to reach the ground water table. The caves have been used for storage and subterranean settlements. Some of the caves are painted (note 2), and yielded archaeological and historical finds (CHAOGUI 1990). SITUATION: About 2000 kilometres west of Lhasa, on the southern banks of Sutlej river, the abandoned town of Tsaparang or Chabrang and Chaprang (note 3) lies 136 km on the Shiquanhe / Ali to Barkha / Barga road to Naburu military camp, then 144 km to –>Tholing / Thöling / Toling / Tzata (190 km from Menjir), and finally 20 km from Tholing to Tsaparang. There are several troglodyte settlements in the vicinity, e.g. >Dawa Dzong, –>Dongpo.>Dawa Dzong, –>Dongpo.
Documents
Bibliography 06/01/2018- Aschoff, J -C 1989; Berry, Steve 1998; Chaogui, Ao 1990; Govinda, Anagarika [alias: Hoffmann, alias: Wangchuk] 1960 (reprinted 1974, 1977, 1982, 1987, 1991, 1992), 1969 (reprinted 1973, 1975, 1983), 1978; Harrer, Heinrich 1952, 1984a, 1984b; Hedin, Sven 1909-1912a, 1909-1912b, 1991; Ngapo Ngawang Jigmei et al. 1981a, 1981b edited 1984; Petech, Luciano 1980; Pranavananda, Swami [alias: Somayajulu, Kanakadandi Venkata] 1949, 1983; Price, Liz 1988a; Schlagintweit Sakünlunski, Adolf 1872; Stein, Rolf A 1988; Tucci, Giuseppe 1936b, 1937, 1953a, 1953b, 1977; Tucci, Giuseppe & Ghersi, G 1935; Uhlig 1987; Wessels, C 1912; Weyer, Helfried & Aschoff, Jürgen C 1987; Zhenhua, Sun 1989.
History
EXPLORATION HISTORY: 842-1175: Tsaparang was the flourishing capital of Guge kingdom (circa 1000 to 1630 AD). 1624, early August: The Jesuit Catholic Father Antonio de Adrada (1580 Oleiros, Portugal - 1634.03.19 Goa), kindly received by the sovereign, stayed three weeks before returning to Agra (BUXTON, Bill 2003). 1625: Antonio de Adrada returned to establish a permanent mission, converted people, built a Catholic church, and eventually was called back to Goa in 1630, and died there on 19th March 1634. The mission in Tsaparang was closed in 1635. An attempt to reopen it in 1640 failed (BUXTON, Bill 2003). 1855: Adolf SCHLAGINTWEIT-SAKÜLUNSKI (1872) payed a visit without loosing a single word on the caves. 1908: Sven Anders HEDIN (1909-1912a, 1909-1912b edited 1991, III: 305-314) payed a visit without loosing words on the caves. 1933, 1935: Giuseppe Tucci turned up to cover aspects of cultural history (TUCCI & GHERSI 1935; TUCCI 1936, 1937). … AUFSCHNAITER, Peter & HARRER, Heinrich.198: Ernst Lothar Hoffmann (alias Lama Anagarika Govinda alias A.K. Wangchuk) and spouse Li Gotami, visited Tsaparang (GOVINDA & GOTAMI Li 1960 edited 1974, 1977, 1982, 1987, 1991, 1992; 1969 edited 1973, 1975, 1983- 1978). 1996 September: One unspecified 'cave' was shown by the only resident, a Tibetan caretaker, to the British trekker Steve Barry, who proves his expertise by ascribing the 'terrible stench' of the found 'mass of rags and bones' to generals killed during the 17th century occupation by Ladakh (BERRY 1998. 31). All these generals, I assume, were commaned by the soldier Zorovar Singh.
Caves nearby
| Distance (km) | Name | Length (m) | Depth (m) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0.3 | Bharku Caves | ||
| 27.6 | SARANG ROCK SHELTERS | ||
| 885.3 | PANGU KHOLA SHELTER | ||
| 1179.5 | Qizil Ming Öy | ||
| 1548.1 | TSAGHAN USSE GROTTO | ||
| 1660.7 | Rje kun 'gro | ||
| 1661.0 | Tieren (Grotte de) | ||
| 1699.0 | TUN-HUANG CAVES | ||
| 2242.4 | Tchagyrka (Grotte de) | 0 | 0 |