The city of Pagan (also called Bagan) is one of Myanmar's former capitals, and was founded in the year 849. It was the capital of the Pagan Empire, where Theravada Buddhism was the main faith. This can be seen from the huge number of temples still standing in Pagan today; Pagan has the largest collection of Buddhist temples, ruins and stupas in the world. In 1287, the city was abandoned by its residents, who left the city in fear as the Mongols were coming to conquer it. Perhaps partly because the city was deserted when the Mongols arrived, little damage was done to the city itself by the Mongols. Thousands of temples still stand today, often in relatively good condition. An earthquake in 1975 damaged many of the temples, which could not always be repaired.
I am Maarten Verhees. The focus of my photographs is on the variation of architecture, animals and people. I try to capture the essence of local places in photographs... Read more…