Gold-plated Potala Palace gets repair

The Tibetan Buddhism heritage site Potala Palace is known for its shining gold-plated roof, which has just undergone major repair and polishing in Lhasa, capital of Southwest China's Tibet autonomous region. [Photo/Xinhua]

The face-lift took about a year and a half with 31 million yuan ($4.47 million) of funding appropriated by the State Administration of Cultural Heritage.

The 1,300-year-old palace has seven golden peaks on the main building. Before the repairs, parts of the gold plating were damaged from long-term exposure to wind, sun and rain.

During the repair, workers also improved the safety of the roof's wooden structure and the palace's affiliated buildings.

Potala Palace was built by Tibetan King Songtsa Gambo in the seventh century and was expanded in the 17th century. It received 1.45 million tourists in 2017. The palace was included on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1994.