The Piprahwa Discovery

Among the ancient artefacts in storage at the Indian Museum in Kolkata are an exceptional assortment of gold coins, ornaments and exquisitely carved gems. Unearthed in 1898 during the excavation of an ancient Buddhist stupa at Piprahwa, near the India-Nepal border, these treasures were accompanied by a reliquary urn. An inscription on the urn identifies the bone relics within as none other than the Sakya clan’s portion of Gautama Buddha’s sacred remains, the revered founder of Buddhism.

The bone relics were given to the King of Siam (Thailand) to distribute among the world’s Buddhists. The large stone coffer which held the relics is on display at the Indian Museum today, but the museum has never exhibited the gems it contained. The man who made the discovery, William Claxton Peppé, was permitted to retain a fraction of the find restricted to ‘duplicate items’. These are shown in museums today.

PREVIOUS EXHIBITIONS

Museum Rietberg - Zurich, Switzerland. November 2018 - March 2019

Rubin Museum of Art - New York, USA. June 2019 - June 2020

Asian Civilisations Museum - Singapore. November 2022 - March 2023

Metropolitan Museum of Art - New York, USA. July 2023 - November 2023

National Museum of Korea - Seoul, South Korea. December 22nd 2023 - April 14th 2024

The Piprahwa Project makes research materials, information and news available to anyone who wishes to learn more about this incredible discovery.

Please click on the tabs above to learn more about:

Background - The history preceding the excavation of the Piprahwa stupa and the events following it.

Gallery - View original pictures relating to the discovery at Piprahwa alongside photographs of the jewels that were buried with bones of the Buddha for over 2000 years.

Media & Events - Notable events, conferences, media and exhibitions relating to the discovery

Articles and Research - Letters received by W.C.Peppé and research by experts in the fields of epigraphy, gemmology and history provide important information about the discovery

Buddhism -  The discovery may be of great interest to Western academics. It is, however, of far greater religious and spiritual importance to over 500 million Buddhists across the globe.