Alchi Ladakh’s Hidden Buddhist Sanctuary – The Three-Storeyed Temple or Sumtsek , as its name indicates, is a three storey building dedicated to a triad of Bodhisattvas and their secondary deities located in three niches (◊ Sumtsek sculpture gallery). The interior of the ground floor measures 5.4 x 5.8 meters and the niches are 2.1 to 2.7 meters wide and more than four meters high, the niche in the main wall being wider and higher than the niches in the side walls. The mural paintings of the Sumtsek are the subject of a major publication which documents most of the temple.
On the south bank of the Indus in Ladakh, facing a great trade and invasion route to the north, lies Alchi, a repository of magnificent Buddhist wall paintings and clay sculptures that have survived for over 800 years. This spectacular, limited edition photo survey details—with 300 color plates, maps, and plans