Leh : Lieutenant Governor of Ladakh Vinai Kumar Saxena on Thursday unveiled Sacred Art of Ladakh: Fading Treasures, a coffee-table book by industrialist, explorer and photographer ShreekantSomany, at The Grand Dragon Ladakh in Leh.
Published by Niyogi Books, the book documents Ladakh’s Buddhist art, architecture and spiritual traditions through photographs and scholarly insights, highlighting the fragile condition of several heritage sites and artworks.
The book draws on Somany’s nine journeys to Ladakh over more than four decades, beginning in 1981. During his travels, he documented fading murals, water-damaged paintings and deteriorating plasterwork across 16 sacred and historic sites, including Lamayuru, Mangyu, Sumda, Wanla, Thiksey, Hemis and Leh Palace.
Unveiling the book, Saxena said it was more than a collection of photographs, describing it as a documentation of Ladakh’s culture, traditions, art and heritage. He said age and environmental conditions were making the region’s sacred heritage increasingly vulnerable and called its preservation a collective responsibility.
Somany said his repeated journeys to Ladakh had allowed him to witness the gradual deterioration of its artistic and spiritual heritage.
“This book is my effort to share what I have witnessed and to encourage greater appreciation and care for a heritage that is both precious and vulnerable,” he said.
Somany has pledged the entire royalty from the book’s sales to initiatives aimed at safeguarding Ladakh’s heritage.
The book also explores the symbolism and iconography of Buddhist art while drawing attention to the threats posed by time, weather and deterioration to the region’s cultural legacy.
