[Myanmar] Workshops in Mandalay

“Myanmar has gold, silver, jade, rubies, teak wood. We are rich men,” said U Soe Gyi as he drove us around workshops and busy markets.

It was quite refreshing to define being rich as not necessarily related to one’s financial state.

Mandalay offers numerous artisan crafts workshops and showrooms. During our stay in Mandalay, we had the opportunity to go to workshops for gold leaf, silk weaving, wood carving, tapestry, and silver.

King Galon Gold Leaf Workshop

The men, such as shown above, pound gold for hours and days.

Gold is pounded until it becomes so thin that it starts to flap away from a finger moving beside it.

Then women scrape the gold sheet into a leaf for adorning Buddha images at pagodas.

Gold leaves. These get rubbed on Buddha images to gild them.

Souvenirs.

Aung Nan Myanmar Handicrafts Workshop

Men carving wood.

Wood carvings.

Women’s tapestry work.

Puppets.

Silk weaving workshop

Ywa Htaung Silversmith Workshop

Silversmithing, known as “pan-tein,” one of many Myanmar’s traditional arts.

Workshop.

Silverware.

Day 9 — Handicraft workshops…

Next post on Day 9’s 3 cities (Amarapura, Sagaing Hill, Innwa)

Previous posts on North side of Mandalay, click here.