A stone’s throw from Mandalay’s stone carving district is a street lined with foundries casting bronze Buddha images. Using a process that dates back thousands of years, skilled craftsmen create detailed wax images of Buddhas which are encased in earthenware clay. The mould is then heated to burn out the wax and the bronze poured in. Foundries in Mandalay are renowned for producing high quality bronzes that are commissioned for temples all over the country.

Here a sculptor at a workshop in Mandalay is working on a large wax image.