Desay Maru Jhyā () is a traditional wooden window in

Kathmandu Kathmandu () is the capital and largest city of Nepal, situated in the central part of the country within the Kathmandu Valley. As per the 2021 Nepal census, it has a population of 845,767 residing in 105,649 households, with approximately 4 mi ...

, which is celebrated for its uniqueness. The name means "window without equal in the country" in

Nepal Bhasa Newar (; , ) is a Sino-Tibetan language spoken by the Newar people, the indigenous inhabitants of Nepal Mandala, which consists of the Kathmandu Valley and surrounding regions in Nepal. The language is known officially in Nepal as Nepal Bhas ...

. The window is set into the facade of a residential house in central Kathmandu. Desay Maru Jhyā is a specimen of the woodcarving heritage of the

Newar Newar (; , endonym: Newa; , Pracalit script: ), or Nepami, are primarily inhabitants in Kathmandu Valley of Nepal and its surrounding areas, and the creators of its historic heritage and civilisation. Page 15. Newars are a distinct linguisti ...

people of

Nepal Nepal, officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal, is a landlocked country in South Asia. It is mainly situated in the Himalayas, but also includes parts of the Indo-Gangetic Plain. It borders the Tibet Autonomous Region of China Ch ...

which goes back more than a thousand years. Newar architecture is characterised by artistic windows and doors set into bare brick walls. The intricate carvings mostly depict religious motifs, ritual objects, mythical beasts and birds. The level of design and carving of the Newar window reached its peak in the mid-18th century. They are found on palaces, private residences and sacred houses across

Nepal Mandala Nepal Mandala () is the ancient geographic division of Nepal into different regions. It was characterized by three major divisions: “ Purwanchal” (Eastern Region), “ Madhyamanchal” (Central Region), and “ Pashchimanchal” (Western Re ...

. Desay Maru Jhyā is famed for being the only one of its kind. While most traditional windows are

bay window A bay window is a window space projecting outward from the main walls of a building and forming a bay in a room. A bow window is a form of bay with a curve rather than angular facets; an oriel window is a bay window that does not touch the g ...

s carved with elaborate details, Desay Maru Jhya is a latticed window with multiple frames. Its design looks like the bellows in an old

folding camera A folding camera is a camera type. Folding cameras fold into a compact and rugged package for storage. The lens and shutter are attached to a lens-board which is connected to the body of the camera by a light-tight folding bellows. When the c ...

. The unique window is set into a house at Naradevi, a street to the north of Kathmandu Durbar Square, the old royal palace complex. The street forms part of the ceremonial circuit in the historic section of Kathmandu through which chariot processions and festival parades pass. The window is a tourist attraction and is part of the itinerary on sightseeing tours of the city.

National treasure

Desay Maru Jhyā is more than a century old and has been declared a national treasure. In 1978, the Postal Service Department of the Nepal government issued a postage stamp depicting the window.

References

{{Reflist Windows Architecture in Nepal Architectural elements Kathmandu Woodcarving Woodworking Newa architecture Cultural history of Nepal