Jogbir Sthāpit ( ne, जोगवीर स्थापित) (alternative names: Joglāl Sthāpit, Bhāju Mān Sthāpit and Jogbir Nāyo) (1838–1926) was a renowned

Nepal Nepal (; ne, नेपाल ), formerly the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal ( ne, सङ्घीय लोकतान्त्रिक गणतन्त्र नेपाल ), is a landlocked country in South Asia. It is ma ...

ese architect best known as the designer of Narayanhiti Royal Palace and renovator of the

Swayambhu Swayambhu ( sa, स्वयंभू) is a Sanskrit word that means "self-manifested", "self-existing", or "that is created by its own accord". Often, the word swayambhu is used to describe a self-manifested image of a deity, which was not made ...

stupa A stupa ( sa, स्तूप, lit=heap, ) is a mound-like or hemispherical structure containing relics (such as '' śarīra'' – typically the remains of Buddhist monks or nuns) that is used as a place of meditation. In Buddhism, circumam ...

Kathmandu , pushpin_map = Nepal Bagmati Province#Nepal#Asia , coordinates = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = , subdivision_type1 = Provinces of Nepal, Province , subdivision_name1 ...

. He was a master of both Western and traditional Nepalese building styles.

Early life

Jogbir was born in Kathmandu into the hereditary

Newar Newar (; new, नेवार, endonym: Newa; new, नेवा, Pracalit script:) or Nepami, are the historical inhabitants of the Kathmandu Valley and its surrounding areas in Nepal and the creators of its historic heritage and civilisation ...

caste of builders. His family name

Sthapit Sthāpit ( ne, स्थापित) is a Nepalese caste from the Newa people of the Kathmandu Valley in Nepal. Sthapits are part of the Uray group which includes Tuladhar, Kansakar, Tamrakar, Bania, Sindurakar, Selalik Kasthakar and other ...

means "establish" in

Sanskrit Sanskrit (; attributively , ; nominalization, nominally , , ) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan languages, Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in South Asia after its predecessor languages had Trans-cul ...

. His father's name was Asha Maru Sthapit and his mother was Jogawati Sthapit. He married Dan Maya after the death of his first wife Gyan Thakun. Sthapit's ancestral neighborhood Thāymaru is located in the central part of the city.

Narayanhiti Palace

The construction of

Narayanhiti Palace The Narayanhiti Palace Museum (Nepali: नारायणहिटी दरवार) is a public museum in Kathmandu, Nepal located east of the Kaiser Mahal and next to Thamel. The museum was created in 2008 from the complex of the former Nar ...

in 1886 is among the highlights of Sthapit's career. Narayanhiti was built on the grounds of the palace of

Rana Rana may refer to: Astronomy * Rana (crater), a crater on Mars * Delta Eridani or Rana, a star People, groups and titles * Rana (name), a given name and surname (including a list of people and characters with the name) * Rana (title), a histor ...

prime minister

Ranodip Singh Kunwar Ranaudip Singh Bahadur Kunwar Ranaji (alternatively spelled Rana Uddip, Renaudip or Ranoddip), KCSI (3 April 1825 – 22 November 1885), commonly known as Ranodip Singh Kunwar ( ne, रणोद्दिप सिंह कुँवर) was th ...

after it was demolished following his assassination by his nephews in 1885. The new prime minister Bir Shamsher hired Jogbir Sthapit to build a new palace where his uncle's palace once stood. Narayanhiti was then made the royal palace, and

Prithvi Bir Bikram Shah Prithvi Bir Bikram Shah ( ne, श्री ५ महाराजाधिराज पृथ्वी वीर विक्रम शाह देव ) (18 August 1875 – 11 December 1911) was King of Nepal from 1881 until 1911. Among the mos ...

became the first king to live in it. Previously, the Shah royal family stayed at Hanuman Dhoka Palace at

Kathmandu Durbar Square Kathmandu Durbar Square (''Basantapur Durbar Kshetra'') is located in front of the old royal palace of the former Kathmandu Kingdom and is one of three Durbar (royal palace) Squares in the Kathmandu Valley in Nepal, all of which are UNESC ...

which was the seat of the old Malla kings. Narayanhiti Palace Museum

In 1958, Sthapit's imposing creation was razed to the ground by Prithvi's grandson

King Mahendra Mahendra Bir Bikram Shah Dev ( ne, श्री ५ महाराजाधिराज महेन्द्र वीर विक्रम शाह देव; 11 June 1920 – 31 January 1972) was the King of Nepal from 13 March 1955 until h ...

who started plans for a new palace. Narayanhiti Palace as it looks now was completed in 1969. It was turned into a museum after Nepal became a republic in 2008.

Swayambhu stupa

Sthapit was equally skilled in traditional architecture. And in one of the greatest heritage restoration projects in Nepal which lasted from 1918 to 1921, the Swayambhu stupa was completely redone under his supervision as the chief engineer. The spire was dismantled and rebuilt. The central shaft was renewed. The five Buddha shrines set into the dome were covered with gilt copper, a new statue of

Vairocana Vairocana (also Mahāvairocana, sa, वैरोचन) is a cosmic buddha from Mahayana and Vajrayana Buddhism. Vairocana is often interpreted, in texts like the '' Avatamsaka Sutra'', as the dharmakāya of the historical Gautama Buddha. In Ea ...

Buddha was installed, and four new shrines were built to house statues of Tara. A row of prayer wheels were also installed all around the stupa. Trader and philanthropist Dharma Man Tuladhar headed the project and was one of its chief sponsors. Jogbir Sthapit was also a benefactor and donated to religious causes. He sponsored a special

Samyak Samyak ( ne, सम्यक) is an almsgiving Buddhist festival celebrated in the Kathmandu Valley in Nepal. During the ceremony which is held on a large open ground, hundreds of Dīpankara Buddha images are assembled, and gifts of different t ...

ceremony, a Buddhist alms-giving festival, in

Nepal Era Nepal Sambat, also spelled as Nepala Sambata, ( Nepal Bhasa: , Nepali: ) is the lunisolar calendar used by the Newari people of Nepal. The Calendar era began on 20 October 879 AD, with 1142 in Nepal Sambat corresponding to the year 2021–2022 ...

1018 (1898 AD). It was held at Bhuikhel, a field at the foot of Swayambhu Hill. In Nepal Era 1020 (1900 AD), he erected a votive stupa behind the Ajimā Temple on top of the hill. Its red brick face design is unique amid the large number of stone shrines there.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sthapit, Jogbir 1838 births 1926 deaths Nepalese architects Newar people People from Kathmandu Nepalese engineers