WINTER PALACE AND BOGD KHAN MUSEUM

The tour begins with the temples, built between 1893 and 1903, whose architecture is inspired by Chinese temples. We first enter the Temple of the Guardians, with its four imposing statues charged with protecting the site. The first pavilion on the left is the Temple of Embroidered Silks, housing numerous tangka (silk paintings) dating from the early ^20th century. The symmetrical pavilion, known as the tangka temple, complements this collection of religious paintings.

The central pavilion in the first courtyard is the temple of faith in knowledge, as indicated by the sign written in Chinese, Manchu and Mongolian above the central door. In this small temple, ceremonies were held to pray for the long life of the Bogd Khan. Note the round windows and the magnificent wooden door adorned with a gilded dragon.

In the second courtyard, the delightfully faded colors of the earlier buildings are here replaced by scarlet reds and gleaming yellows. The pavilion on the right is a library. Its beams are adorned with small paintings depicting landscapes or scenes from daily life. Opposite is the temple of divinities, used to receive distinguished guests. It features a beautiful string of finely carved and decorated red doors, as well as a collection of tangka.

At the far end of this second courtyard is the one-storey central temple. Its three doors are decorated with exquisitely colored sculptures of elephant heads, tigers and dragons. The Lavrin temple housed the religious icons of the ^8th Bogd Khan and served as his place of prayer and meditation. The entrance features a statue of Zanabazar. The temple's other rooms feature a collection of statues created by the country's first Bogd Khan, or by his ^18th-century disciples.

The tour ends with the Bogd Khan's winter palace. This European-style building, constructed in 1905, has been converted into a museum, the first of its kind in Mongolia. On display are objects from the time of the last Bogd Khan: a leopard-skin ger, carriages, a collection of stuffed animals, a series of paintings depicting scenes of daily life in Mongolia... The second floor bears witness to the Bogd Khan's lifestyle: reception room, wife's resting room, clothing exhibition and the couple's bedroom.

In summer, the garden is home to a ger that serves as an art and souvenir store.