International experts help Bagan to enlist as UNESCO World Heritage Site

Bagan is home to over 2,000 ancient pagodas, temples and monasteries. About one in five of these monuments were damaged by an earthquake that hit the region some six months ago. The Dhammayan Gyi Temple, the largest temple in Bagan, is seen being covered with waterproof cloth on Feb. 15, 2017. [Photo: CRIENGLISH.com]

Tourists watching the sunset from one of the damaged temples in Bagan on Feb.15, 2017. [Photo: CRIENGLISH.com]

Two Western tourists take photos in front of the Thatbyinnyu Temple, the tallest pagoda in Bagan, on Feb. 15, 2017. [Photo: CRIENGLISH.com]

The International Conference on the Proposed Program of Bagan Monuments Post-Earthquake Restoration and Preservation kicked off on Feb. 15, 2017. [Photo: CRIENGLISH.com]

The conference was jointly organized by Myanmar, China and UNESCO. [Photo: CRIENGLISH.com]

Yuan Yujie, a senior researcher with the Chinese Academy of Cultural Heritage, speaks at the conference on Feb. 15. [Photo: CRIENGLISH.com]

UNESCO conservator-restorer of paintings, Rodolfo Lujan-Lunsford (center), visits Bagan monuments with other experts attending the meeting on Feb 15. [Photo: CRIENGLISH.com]

Two archaeologists from China visit a damaged temple in Bagan on Feb. 15. [Photo: CRIENGLISH.com]

Experts from India visit a seriously damaged temple in Bagan on Feb.15. [Photo: CRIENGLISH.com]

Participants at the conference pose for a group photo inside the Bagan Archaeological Museum on Feb 15. [Photo: CRIENGLISH.com]

Chinese Ambassador to Myanmar Hong Liang (right) presents 1 million US dollars of donation from the Chinese government to Aung Ko (left), Myanmar's Minister of Religious Affairs, to help with Bagan's monument reservation and conservation work on Feb. 15. [Photo: CRIENGLISH.com]