by Rajeeb Man Tamrakar, Chen Qiaoyan

    KATHMANDU, May 6 (Xinhua) -- A team of scholars and mountaineers recently discovered caves with magnificent ancient mural depicting Buddhist teachings and religion in the remote Himalayan district of Mustang in northern Nepal, situated some 200km north of Kathmandu.

    The Mustang region, which opened to foreigners in 1992 is a visually stunning but often dry and harsh alpine terrain adjoining China¡¯s Tibet which is considered as the trans-Himalayan desert area.

    The team comprising American, Italian and Nepali archaeologists and explorers, following the lead of local shepherds who took shelter in one of those caves joined the expedition to uncover those cave complexes said to contain fascinating Buddhist mural. The archaeologists of the team believed that the exiting finding they uncovered dates between 13th and 14th century.

    Talking to Xinhua here on Sunday, Prakash Darnal, the Chief Archeology Officer of the Culture Preservation and Promotion Division at the Ministry of Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation and one of the team member responsible in uncovering the caves said this is the first time that such archeological expedition was carried out in the Upper Mustang region after being allowed to foreigners.

    The expedition was participated by two Nepali archaeologists including Darnal and Sukra Sagar Shrestha who also worked as liaison officer on behalf of the government of Nepal.

    Chief Archeology Officer Darnal expressed the view that the caves they have found at Choser area in Upper Mustang still remained intact till the date due to its location which is virtually inaccessible to human beings.

    He, however, declined to reveal the exact location of the caves as treasure hunters might ransack those cave as it had happened in the past.

    Among the findings they uncovered inside the caves comprised decorative wall motifs seen nowhere else in Asia, different types of China's Tibetan scripts executed in ink, silver and gold along with pre-Christian era pottery shred, according to Nepali archaeologists.

    Archeologist Darnal said that the locals recalled of such historic monuments, which were never been documented by anybody but were being told as folklore by generation to generation in the villages. The elders of the area could relate large number of such monuments in the area, which were forgotten by the present generation.

    "But the elders of the region confirmed that every settlement in the region had similar caves which were apparently reserved as an assembly room for Buddhist teachings," he said.

    He said that the findings could just be a window as they found several holes in single caves. "We found clusters of at least 40-50 smaller chambers inside a single cave and there is possibility that the caves are interrelated from within," he added.

    Although the exact reason and people responsible in drawing such magnificent mural can not be confirmed right now, the archaeologists involved in the expedition expressed the view that the caves could have been used by the pilgrims crossing Nepal-China border for meditation as the caves are located near Mansarovar lake, a popular pilgrimage among Nepali and Indians Buddhists as well as Hindus situated in China.

    "Among 18-20 passes used by the travelers to cross Nepal-China border, only the Mustang has the pass which could be used throughout the year. Most of the passes remain inaccessible due to harsh climatic condition," said Darnal.

    Prior to this, during a research jointly carried out by Cologne and Bonn Universities at lower Mustang, various objects including stone tools and pottery shreds were found which dated back some 2,800 years. According to archaeologist Shrestha, they conducted expedition in lower Mustang because foreigners were not allowed to travel upper Mustang then.

    Meanwhile, Broughton Coburn, an environmental and cultural conservation expert who returned to Kathmandu from the expedition earlier this week told reporters, "We felt that it was unusual that a wall painting as intricate and delicately executed and intact could be found for the first time in this millennia."

    The team assisted by two world-class mountaineers braved the rigors of Mustang with average altitude of 4,500 meters and gale-force winds using custom made prototypical climbing tools to anchor the team to the poor quality, crumbling rock at the cave to find the cave complexes containing a stunning, seven-meter long mural.

    "I can unequivocally say that climbing the caves was greatly more exciting than any emotions I had on Mt. Everest (Qomolangma)," said Pete Athens, a leading mountaineer who successfully scaled the Mt. Qomolongma seven times. Sharing his experience about the expedition with the media, Athens said that leading the climbs into the previously unexplored territory knocked the experience of climbing Mt. Qomolongma into the shades.