New episodeWritten Artefacts of Nepal

11 August 2022

A new video series introduces the work of the project 'Preserving the Written Cultural Heritage of Nepal'. In the latest episode, Bidur Bhattarai presents a Nepalese Buddhist 'nīlapatra' manuscript.

The new episode is all about a Buddhist manuscript that is written on nīlapatra (‘black paper’) using ‘gold-like’ ink. Produced in 1871 CE by an individual named Śrīvajrācārya Śrīratnabhāju (‘the respected Mr Ratna Vajrācārya’) of Kathmandu, this manuscript illustrates, among other things, the longstanding tradition of the artistic production of books in the region, and in particular a choice of material and medium that are unique to Nepal.

The video is the third part of 'Written Artefacts of Nepal – Preservation and Documentation', a series of short films that offers a brief and accessible introduction to Nepalese written artefacts, exploring their diversity and uniqueness in terms of writing, supports, materials, forms, and texts. All episodes are available in Nepalese with English subtitles. The series is initiated and produced by Bidur Bhattarai, Coordinator of the project in Nepal.