Kathmandu - Mul Chowk

Beyond the modest single-story buildings seen ahead on entering Nasal Chowk lies the smaller Mul Chowk, its true splendor only revealed when once inside. Fine carvings embellish the entrance and small windows. The carved roof struts portray the eighteen-armed Mahashamardini. On the south side of the court is a shrine dedicated to Taleju, its doorway flanked by statues of the goddesses Ganga and Jamuna.

As the occasional abode of the goddess Taleju the court is barred to visitors, though it is often possible to peep in through the gate. The Chowk is opened to Hindus once a year when, on the ninth day of the Dasain Festival, hundreds of buffaloes and goats are sacrificed to the goddess.

Part of what is probably the oldest surviving wing of the palace, Mul Chowk was built in 1564 and altered early in the 18th c. at the time of Bhaskara Malla.