Buddhist · Nepal · SITE DOSSIER
Tengboche Monastery
A Himalayan monastery rebuilt after earthquake and fire.
Tengboche, Khumbu · Koshi Province
Rebuilt
As documented: 2026-09-28Approximate locality
27.8336°, 86.7000° · not a surveyed footprintHow to read this history
- Dates of source consultation are not dates of field inspection. Historical events do not establish the current condition.
- No independent specialist review. Complete site history and underlying reference assessment remain open.
AI-assisted source review: 2026-09-28. Independent specialist review: not completed.
The recorded chronology
Selected episodes. Rebuilding and later changes are distinguished from damage.
- Destruction · natural causeOpen this episode on the map ↗
1933–1934 AD · sources differ
An earthquake destroyed the earlier monastery.
eventSupported in consulted sourcesAn earthquake destroyed the earlier monastery.
PBS gives 1933; the reference article gives 1934. The discrepancy is retained pending comparison with project archives.
- Tyengboche Monastery ↗PBS / NOVA · Damage/history passage identified in the source context on the Sources page · Accessed 2026-09-28
- Tengboche Monastery — article and references ↗Wikipedia contributors · Damage/history passage identified in the source context on the Sources page · Accessed 2026-09-28
dateSupported in consulted sources1933–1934 · sources differ
- Tyengboche Monastery ↗PBS / NOVA · Damage/history passage identified in the source context on the Sources page · Accessed 2026-09-28
- Tengboche Monastery — article and references ↗Wikipedia contributors · Damage/history passage identified in the source context on the Sources page · Accessed 2026-09-28
actorUnknownNo human actor: natural damage.
Cause and responsibility must not be inferred from a ruin alone.
- Destruction · accidental causeOpen this episode on the map ↗
19 January 1989 AD
A fire destroyed the monastery and much of its religious collection.
eventSupported in consulted sourcesA fire destroyed the monastery and much of its religious collection.
The reference account identifies an electrical short circuit; no intentional destroyer is alleged.
- Tyengboche Monastery ↗PBS / NOVA · Damage/history passage identified in the source context on the Sources page · Accessed 2026-09-28
- Tengboche Monastery — article and references ↗Wikipedia contributors · Damage/history passage identified in the source context on the Sources page · Accessed 2026-09-28
dateSupported in consulted sources19 January 1989
- Tyengboche Monastery ↗PBS / NOVA · Damage/history passage identified in the source context on the Sources page · Accessed 2026-09-28
- Tengboche Monastery — article and references ↗Wikipedia contributors · Damage/history passage identified in the source context on the Sources page · Accessed 2026-09-28
actorUnknownA responsible individual or organization has not been established.
Cause and responsibility must not be inferred from a ruin alone.
Location & last documented condition
Approximate locality coordinate; not a surveyed historic footprint.
- Tengboche Monastery — article and references ↗Wikipedia contributors · History / damage account; see source context · Accessed 2026-09-28
PBS describes the rebuilt monastery.
- Tyengboche Monastery ↗PBS / NOVA · History / damage account; see source context · Accessed 2026-09-28
Source context
Explore the complete captured Wikipedia bibliography ↗
References are discovery leads unless marked as consulted.
- Tyengboche Monastery ↗ · PBS / NOVA
Liesl Clark. Describes an earthquake (dated 1933 here, versus 1934 in other accounts), the 1989 fire and reconstruction.
Discovery: Expansion review: original institution/report or Wikipedia reference trail · Access: direct - Tengboche Monastery — article and references ↗ · Wikipedia contributors
Article text consulted. Underlying works are separately inventoried; this source is not independent corroboration.
Discovery: Wikipedia reference trail or independent source search · Access: direct