Buddhist / Hindu · Nepal · SITE DOSSIER

Swayambhunath complex

A sacred hill complex damaged during the 2015 earthquake.

Kathmandu · Bagmati Province

LAST DOCUMENTED CONDITION

Mixed

As documented: 2026-09-28

LOCATION PRECISION

Approximate locality

27.7150°, 85.2900° · not a surveyed footprint

How to read this history

The entry describes damage to the complex and does not claim complete collapse of the main stupa.
Access date is not a field inspection. This selected chronology is not a complete list of all episodes.
Underlying bibliography is available with access status; independent specialist review remains outstanding.

AI-assisted source review: 2026-09-28. Independent specialist review: not completed.

The recorded chronology

Selected episodes. Rebuilding and later changes are distinguished from damage.

Damage · natural causeOpen this episode on the map ↗
April 2015 AD
The earthquake damaged buildings in the complex.
eventSupported in consulted sources
The earthquake damaged buildings in the complex.
- Swayambhunath complex — Wikipedia article and bibliography ↗Wikipedia contributors · History / damage account; see source context · Accessed 2026-09-28
dateSupported in consulted sources
April 2015
- Swayambhunath complex — Wikipedia article and bibliography ↗Wikipedia contributors · History / damage account; see source context · Accessed 2026-09-28
actorUnknown
No human actor: natural damage.
Cause and responsibility must not be inferred from a ruin alone.
Partial destruction · natural causeOpen this episode on the map ↗
25 April 2015 AD
The earthquake damaged the Mangal Bahudwar Chaitya within the Swayambhu complex.
eventSupported in consulted sources
The earthquake damaged the Mangal Bahudwar Chaitya within the Swayambhu complex.
This component is included in the existing Swayambhu dossier, not added as another complex.
- Rise of the Mangalbahudwar Stupa from the rubble of 2015 earthquake ↗UNESCO · Damage/history passage identified in the source context on the Sources page · Accessed 2026-09-28
dateSupported in consulted sources
25 April 2015
- Rise of the Mangalbahudwar Stupa from the rubble of 2015 earthquake ↗UNESCO · Damage/history passage identified in the source context on the Sources page · Accessed 2026-09-28
actorUnknown
No human actor: natural damage.
Cause and responsibility must not be inferred from a ruin alone.
Partial destruction · natural causeOpen this episode on the map ↗
25 April 2015 AD · precinct components
The assessment lists collapsed Anantapur and monastic buildings, and damage to Shantipur, Pratappur and Harati Temple within the existing Swayambhu complex.
eventSupported in consulted sources
The assessment lists collapsed Anantapur and monastic buildings, and damage to Shantipur, Pratappur and Harati Temple within the existing Swayambhu complex.
Components remain part of this complex dossier and are not counted as additional independent sites.
- Kathmandu Valley joint monitoring mission: Annex 8 damage inventory ↗Nepal Department of Archaeology / UNESCO, ICOMOS and ICCROM · Annex 8, serials 137–149 · Accessed 2026-09-28
dateSupported in consulted sources
25 April 2015 · precinct components
- Kathmandu Valley joint monitoring mission: Annex 8 damage inventory ↗Nepal Department of Archaeology / UNESCO, ICOMOS and ICCROM · Annex 8, serials 137–149 · Accessed 2026-09-28
actorUnknown
No human actor: natural damage.
Cause and responsibility must not be inferred from a ruin alone.

Location & last documented condition

locationSupported in consulted sources

Approximate locality; not a surveyed historic footprint.

Swayambhunath complex — Wikipedia article and bibliography ↗Wikipedia contributors · History / damage account; see source context · Accessed 2026-09-28

present conditionAttributed · further checking needed

Surviving and rebuilt fabric coexist with historic losses.

Swayambhunath complex — Wikipedia article and bibliography ↗Wikipedia contributors · History / damage account; see source context · Accessed 2026-09-28

Source context

Explore the complete captured Wikipedia bibliography ↗
References are discovery leads unless marked as consulted.

Swayambhunath complex — Wikipedia article and bibliography ↗ · Wikipedia contributors
Article text consulted through Jina Reader. Underlying references are inventoried separately; listing a work does not mean it was read. Event attributions based only on this secondary account are labelled attributed.
Discovery: Wikipedia reference trail or independent source search · Access: direct
Rise of the Mangalbahudwar Stupa from the rubble of 2015 earthquake ↗ · UNESCO
9 September 2019. Specific damaged component within the already mapped Swayambhu complex; used to enrich its chronology without adding a duplicate site.
Discovery: Expansion review: original institution/report or Wikipedia reference trail · Access: direct
Kathmandu Valley joint monitoring mission: Annex 8 damage inventory ↗ · Nepal Department of Archaeology / UNESCO, ICOMOS and ICCROM
Original PDF, pages 82–84: assessment updated 30 July 2015. Cross-checked PDF text layer corrects misaligned scraped rows. Records historical damage, not the present condition.
Discovery: Wikipedia reference trail or independent source search · Access: direct

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