crown

Subscribe Now

FOLLOW US

Sign in

Photos: Armed police keep looters off Myanmar’s temple treasures

After several reports of thefts in temples which house precious artefacts and relics, squads of gun-toting police personnel have now been deployed to comb Bagan in Myanmar for plunderers striking under the cover of night. Bagan, the 13th century capital of the proto-Burmese Pagan empire in Myanmar and a UNESCO World Heritage site since 2019 has been shut to tourists out of coronavirus concerns since April.

Updated on: Jul 06, 2020 6:50 PM IST

Share via

Copy link

1/10

Members of a police squad seen patrolling a temple complex in Bagan, Myanmar in late June. Armed police have been combing the ancient city of Bagan, a UNESCO World Heritage site that is strewn with centuries old temples, pagodas and numerous other monuments, as intruders seek to turn coronavirus imposed restrictions to their advantage and make away with priceless relics. (Ye Aung Thu / AFP)

Updated on Jul 06, 2020 6:50 PM

Members of a police squad seen patrolling a temple complex in Bagan, Myanmar in late June. Armed police have been combing the ancient city of Bagan, a UNESCO World Heritage site that is strewn with centuries old temples, pagodas and numerous other monuments, as intruders seek to turn coronavirus imposed restrictions to their advantage and make away with priceless relics. (Ye Aung Thu / AFP)

2/10

A woman clears weeds in a temple complex in Bagan on June 22. Bagan was once the capital of the kingdom of Pagan, which was the first to unify regions that later formed modern Myanmar. The UNESCO tag received in 2019 had the country hopeful about tourism but the pandemic has stymied plans to capitalise on that new-found status. (Ye Aung Thu / AFP)

Updated on Jul 06, 2020 6:50 PM

A woman clears weeds in a temple complex in Bagan on June 22. Bagan was once the capital of the kingdom of Pagan, which was the first to unify regions that later formed modern Myanmar. The UNESCO tag received in 2019 had the country hopeful about tourism but the pandemic has stymied plans to capitalise on that new-found status. (Ye Aung Thu / AFP)

3/10

Members of a police squad on patrol in a temple complex in Bagan. A dearth of visitors means temples and hotels lie empty, crushing the livelihoods of locals in an economy leaning heavy on tourism, opening doors to opportunistic burglars. (Ye Aung Thu / AFP)

Updated on Jul 06, 2020 6:50 PM

Members of a police squad on patrol in a temple complex in Bagan. A dearth of visitors means temples and hotels lie empty, crushing the livelihoods of locals in an economy leaning heavy on tourism, opening doors to opportunistic burglars. (Ye Aung Thu / AFP)

4/10

A policeman stands guard around a temple complex in Bagan in late June. In a spate of break-ins across the 50 square kilometre site in early June, robbers looted 12 different temples, swiping a range of relics, including copper stupas, ancient coins and jade jewellery. (Ye Aung Thu / AFP)

Updated on Jul 06, 2020 6:50 PM

A policeman stands guard around a temple complex in Bagan in late June. In a spate of break-ins across the 50 square kilometre site in early June, robbers looted 12 different temples, swiping a range of relics, including copper stupas, ancient coins and jade jewellery. (Ye Aung Thu / AFP)

5/10

Members of a police squad board a truck during a patrol of a temple complex at night in Bagan on June 22. The 35th Battalion regional police squad have been deployed to bolster local tourism police and firefighters. The patrol teams range across the site by jeep, motorbike and foot. (Ye Aung Thu / AFP)

Updated on Jul 06, 2020 6:50 PM

Members of a police squad board a truck during a patrol of a temple complex at night in Bagan on June 22. The 35th Battalion regional police squad have been deployed to bolster local tourism police and firefighters. The patrol teams range across the site by jeep, motorbike and foot. (Ye Aung Thu / AFP)

6/10

Members of a police squad stand guard outside a temple complex in Bagan on June 22. The squads have to contend with the area’s numerous venomous snakes along with the sheer size of the region. (Ye Aung Thu / AFP)

Updated on Jul 06, 2020 6:50 PM

Members of a police squad stand guard outside a temple complex in Bagan on June 22. The squads have to contend with the area’s numerous venomous snakes along with the sheer size of the region. (Ye Aung Thu / AFP)

7/10

A policeman is pictured riding in a truck while he patrols a temple complex in Bagan, late June. This is the first time in decades the site has been so seriously targeted, Myint Than, deputy director of Bagan’s archaeological department told AFP. (Ye Aung Thu / AFP)

Updated on Jul 06, 2020 6:50 PM

A policeman is pictured riding in a truck while he patrols a temple complex in Bagan, late June. This is the first time in decades the site has been so seriously targeted, Myint Than, deputy director of Bagan’s archaeological department told AFP. (Ye Aung Thu / AFP)

8/10

A police squad patrols the temple complex in Bagan on June 22. Bagan welcomed nearly half a million visitors in 2019, while this year the figure was 130,000 up until the country’s New Year festival in April and much of the area has been closed to tourists since. (Ye Aung Thu / AFP)

Updated on Jul 06, 2020 6:50 PM

A police squad patrols the temple complex in Bagan on June 22. Bagan welcomed nearly half a million visitors in 2019, while this year the figure was 130,000 up until the country’s New Year festival in April and much of the area has been closed to tourists since. (Ye Aung Thu / AFP)

9/10

The Milky Way seen above a temple complex in Bagan on June 23. Thousands of temples and stupas in Bagan are a visual catalogue of Burmese architectural styles evolving over a millennium. Bagan is also considered the first example of vaulting and several other masonry techniques in Buddhist temple design. (Ye Aung Thu / AFP)

Updated on Jul 06, 2020 6:50 PM

The Milky Way seen above a temple complex in Bagan on June 23. Thousands of temples and stupas in Bagan are a visual catalogue of Burmese architectural styles evolving over a millennium. Bagan is also considered the first example of vaulting and several other masonry techniques in Buddhist temple design. (Ye Aung Thu / AFP)

10/10

A police squad riding on patrol in Bagan on June 22. And while times are hard in this area dependent on tourism, Myint Than, the deputy director of the local archaeological department strongly suspects the hand of outsiders behind thefts. Even if local livelihoods were devastated, they would never “betray their heritage,” he told AFP. (Ye Aung Thu / AFP)

Updated on Jul 06, 2020 6:50 PM

A police squad riding on patrol in Bagan on June 22. And while times are hard in this area dependent on tourism, Myint Than, the deputy director of the local archaeological department strongly suspects the hand of outsiders behind thefts. Even if local livelihoods were devastated, they would never “betray their heritage,” he told AFP. (Ye Aung Thu / AFP)

Related Photos

Home/Photos/News/Photos: Armed Police Keep Looters Off Myanmar’s Temple Treasures

© 2026 HindustanTimes