IDNO

P.97057.WIL

Description

On Cech’s list describing prints:
“(58-135 where taken in Lhasa.)
119. “Sera monastery 11.9.33”
119a/b. Distant view of the monastery.
MPOW: 121-2.” [printed text]
For more information see Cech’s list.

A view across a flat plain of Sera monastery at the base of a large hill. The monastery spreads out along the base of the hill and consists of low two and three story buildings. Two riders on horseback can be seen in the foreground facing the monastery.

Place

C Asia; Tibet; Lhasa; Sera Monastery

Cultural Affliation

Named Person

Photographer

Williamson, Frederick

Collector / Expedition

Date

11 September 1933

Collection Name

Williamson Collection

Source

Williamson, Margaret

Format

Print Black & White

Primary Documentation

Other Information

Transcription: The transcription of this album by Mark Turin and Sara Shneiderman was carried out with reference to Krystina Cech’s catalogue list alone. Alex Nadin has since revised their cataloguing by systematically matching their records to the images. Margaret Williamson’s handwritten captions for photographs have now been transcribed into the Inscription field, and Cech’s descriptions appear in the Description field. Correct entries for Place, Named Person and Other Nos. have also been entered by Alex Nadin. [Sudeshna Guha 29/10/2002]

Place: “Sera monastery lies about 5 km to the north of Lhasa along the base of the mountains at the edge of the valley. It is one of the three great Gelugpa monasteries near Lhasa, the other two being Drepung and Ganden. Until the Chinese occupation it served like its two sister monasteries, as a center for learning and monastic training to which monks from all corners of Tibet would come to spend 15-20 years methodically studying and debating the meaning of Buddhist scriptures. Thus for centuries it existed as a small monastic township housing over 5000 fully ordained monks, novices, workers and other functionaries. The monastery was built below a small hermitage where Tsongkhapa had spent several years in retreat both meditating on and writing commentaries to the Buddhist scriptures. A leading disciple of Tsongkhapa, Shakya Teshe 91352-14350 started constructing Sera in 1419, the year of his teacher’s death.” [Source: Cech’s list, CJ 2/9/2008]

This catalogue record has been updated with the support of the Getty Grant Program Two. [Caspian James 2/9/2008]