Tholing - Tsaparang: Buddhist Monasteries in the Kingdom of Guge/ Tibet

This project application is an extension/addition to a project application already submitted by the Institute of Tibetology and Buddhism Studies of Vienna University that is focused on researching and documenting western Tibetan monastery art, starting with the Temple of Yeshe-Öd at the Tholing monastery complex. Violent destruction during the period of the cultural revolution and subsequent destruction by erosion reduced Tholing monastery, founded in the 10th century, a gem of Tibetan monastery art, to a state of extreme risk. The result of this part of the work will not only be a building documentation of the Tholing complex, but above and beyond that a basis for suggested preservation measures, possibilities of "structural protection" of the ruins, and a reconstruction of the overall complex. Furthermore, the aim is to create a visualisation model of the temple with the aid of computer simulation - current condition and reconstruction, which will help the viewer get an overall picture of the complex by allocating sculpture and murals in the overall make-up of the building. One intention of this is to offer a basis for suggestions for future "protective measures", from the specific viewpoint of the materials and work methods available in Tibet, and to improve the conditions for preservation of world cultural heritage.

The architectural research as a part of the FSP will be an intensified and improved continuation of an above project: "Monastic Architecture in the Kingdom of Guge". In the first period of the recent research, the fieldstudy, the disciplines will co-operate intensively. Selected monuments will be measured and surveyed with the combined technical resources in terms of site-layout, building form and dimensions, construction, building material and damages on the buildings. The analysis of the surveyed building includes reports as well as the drawing of CAAD plans. In those cases, where buildings have been changed in shape and structure as a result of repair works or have been (partly) demolished, the original form will be reconstructed virtually in a 3D-animated model. Thus, with the comparison of survey results and archive data, even complex structures such as the temples of Tholing could be rebuilt on the computer. Based on this analysis a typology of monastic buildings will be developed and visualised. The impact of site-specific influences (topography, climate) as well as cultural influences, as far as they are related to the form and construction, will be defined and compared. During the recent years, new technologies have been developed, providing the architectural scientist with a new range of technical equipment in the fields of measurement, survey and computer-aided design. These new technical resources will be exploited in the project. In addition to its analytic aspect, which aims at a holistic typology (form, structure and detail), architectural research is the necessary basis for repairs, conservation and maintenance. The reports of each temple will include descriptions of construction methods and static structures (i.e. the combination of wooden beams and columns with clay and stone for the external, loadbearing walls), proportions and aesthetic concepts. There will also be a detailed research on the influence of construction methods and the quality of building materials on typical damage patterns; especially the roof constructions proved to be the very weak part of the building envelope (meteor rains, additional roof loads as a consequence of new water resistent layers of clay). Finally, the infrastructure of the communities in which the monuments are centred, will be examined. This will be necessary for the development of a further conservation check list, which shall serve as a basic guide-line (conservation management) for further conservation action using local technologies and resources. The further goal of the architectural research is the development of a methodology of conservation of monastic Buddhist buildings. As already mentioned, most of the monastic buildings in the Western Himalaya are in a deteriorate condition. This is due to insufficient maintenance, low quality of materials used and the construction principles themselves. Thus a sustainable use of the religious monuments can be seen as a guarantee of socio-cultural continuity and the conservation of the cultural heritage.