Erdeni Dzu

Erdeni Dzu

 

the first Buddhist monastery and largest religious and political center in medieval Mongolia. Erdeni Dzu was founded in 1585 in the southern part of Karakorum, the capital of the old Mongolian state. In the 18th century the monastery was heavily damaged, and later in the century it began to lose its importance.

Parts of the monastery that have been preserved include walls with numerous towers (suburgans) and gates, several temples, fragments of wall paintings, and a sculpture. Erdeni Dzu was restored in the 1940’s. The monastery is now a museum.

REFERENCE

Kiselev, S. V., and N. Ia. Merpert. “Iz istorii Kara-Koruma.” In the collection Drevnemongol’skie goroda. Moscow, 1965.