TO THE COURT OF AVA. 
15 
Nyaong-ku to-day until two o’clock. This gave 
us an opportunity of seeing the place, and ex¬ 
amining its temples and manufactory of lack¬ 
ered ware. The innumerable temples of Pugan 
extend to Nyaong-ku, and beyond it. The most 
celebrated at Nyaong-ku is that called Shwe- 
segum, or the Golden Temple. The original 
building is said to have been constructed by 
Naurat’ha-sau, a king of Pugan, whose reign 
commenced in the year 359, and terminated in 
392, of the Burman vulgar era. According to 
this statement, the building cannot be less than 
seven hundred and ninety-six years old. The 
temple itself is a solid mass of masonry, in the 
form of a pyramid, and gilt. The extensive area 
which surrounds it is crowded with a variety of 
wooden fanes, very richly gilt and carved, con¬ 
taining images of Gautama and his disciples, some 
of them of white marble ; innumerable images of 
Nats in red sandstone; and some relics of great 
celebrity among the Burmans,—such as the statue 
of a horse in sandstone, representing the favou¬ 
rite steed of the founder; a fish called Nga- 
kren, which represents Gautama in this form, 
with three celebrated Nats, one of the female 
and two of the male gender. These relics are 
of the rudest description imaginable, and such of 
them as aim at the form of humanity, hideously 
ugly. Close to this principal temple there is 
another in a ruinous state, of the ancient form. 
