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type: documentation, design, restoration, training
date: 2004-
for: UNESCO
description:
This project concerns the preservation and conservation of sites and monuments on the ancient Silk Road. Tree sites are selected in the Chuy Valley at Kyrgyzstan, 40-50km east of the capital Bishkek: Krasnaya Rechka, Ak-Beshim and Burana. The aims of the project are the documentation of the sites, the preservation and conservation of the Second Buddhist Temple at Krasnaya Rechka and training of local experts in conservation and documentation.
Several campaigns of excavations were held on the Second Buddhist Temple in the past. Archaeologists dated the Second Buddhist Temple 7th & 8th century AD. A recently analysed wood sample is dated end 9-beginning 10th century by carbon-14 testing. The remains of the temple show a cella with ambulatory in square plan, built with thick mud-brick walls.
Some precious museum pieces survived since excavation time. On a platform in the western gallery of the ambulatory, a tall lying Buddha was excavated in 1961 and transported in pieces to the Hermitage museum at St. Petersburg.
A careful surface cleaning will be carried out to find traces of lost walls. The remaining walls will be conserved. In preparation of the conservation works, materials and construction techniques are studied.
The conserved structures will be covered by a shelter structure to protect them from wind and weather and to show them to the public in proper conditions. A multi-applicable system is proposed, suitable to cover different structures at the different sites. Wooden beams of available limited length are assembled to stylised "trees". Special attention is paid to the connections and detailing.
Download a detailed fact sheet: krasnaya.pdf