Built in 2004 by the Queen of Bhutan, Khamsum Yulley Namgyal is a chorten, or stupa, overlooking the Punakha Valley. It was built with a specific function in mind: to ward off evil spirits in Bhutan and across the world, and to bring peace and harmony to all living things.
Despite its relatively recent construction, Khamsum Yulley Namgyal was built in strict accordance with traditional teachings. It took Bhutanese carpenters, painters and sculptors nine years to build the four-story, pagoda-style stupa, as well as the various smaller pagodas surrounding it, some of which contain prayer wheels.