Yeti of Kathmandu – Kathmandu, Nepal - Atlas Obscura

Yeti of Kathmandu

Nepal’s capital has recently experienced an abominable invasion. 

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While skulking around the alleyways of Kathmandu looking for Dr. Strange, you are more likely to run into mammoth creatures that have overrun the city.  108 Yeti have been painted by Nepali artists and placed around the valley and beyond as part of the Visit Nepal 2020 campaign.

At first glance, the sculptures look more like sumo wrestlers in repose, or squatting Buddhas, but in fact they are seven-foot tall stylized renderings of Nepal’s legendary creature as imagined by artist Ang Tshering Sherpa.  Despite their odd appearance, the Yeti was chosen as a more recognizable and welcoming symbol of Nepal than the emblematic rhododendron or the national bird – the monal pheasant.

But despite cultural and commercial importance, the Yeti have not been without controversy.  Some artists have included religious symbols on their Yeti which has sparked local ire.  As local activist Ganapati Lal Shrestha recently said, “It is an attack on people’s religious belief as they portray the yeti as god.”  People have even been reported to be worshiping the sculptures, and so some Yeti have had to be repainted.

For those who are unlucky enough not to have seen a Yeti in the wild, they can be found roaming the upper reaches of the Himalayas and have been dubbed “abominable snowmen” by westerners.  The name actually translates from Tibetan into either “small human-like mammal” or “rock bear” depending on which etymology you find most convincing. 

Many expeditions have been mounted to study the creature including one in 1960 by the equally legendary Sir Edmund Hillary, but despite many sightings, Yeti have yet to be captured for closer examination.  However, for those with a spare $4,000 - $7,000, a Yeti can be yours to display outside your home or business. 

Know Before You Go

Although the Yeti are part of a larger tourism campaign, they are permanent art installations.  The greatest concentration of Yeti can be found in and around the Thamel district of Kathmandu, but as wild creatures with a wide geographic range, visitors to Nepal may encounter the odd one roaming around the greater Himalaya region.