It is rather rectangular in
shape, with indentations that house some
mandapa-like
porches centered on the sides, thus dividing each of the four
facades
into cube-like blocks with
niche-like
windows in each side of the outer walls.
A flight of steep stairs on the northern side
leads right up to the central core. The vaulted roof has over time
collapsed in many places. Kyaung Lain
means ‘Spiral [Staircase] Monastery’, yet can
literally be translated as
‘Lying
Cat’,
‘Twisted
Cat’
or
‘Curling
Cat’.
The monastery was built by King Taninganway of the Toungoo Dynasty,
who reigned between 1714 and 1733 AD.
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