Bakuo Residential District

The Bakuo Residential District, also known as the historic area surrounding Barkhor Street, is defined by its dense, labyrinthine network of thirty-five alleys that circle the thirteenth-century Jokhang Temple. This neighborhood consists of traditional Tibetan courtyard houses featuring white-washed walls, many of which date back to the growth of the surrounding pilgrimage circuit. The district formed gradually after the seventh century, when the Tibetan King Songtsen Gampo constructed the temple and commissioned surrounding palaces, eventually drawing merchants and pilgrims who built homes and workshops along the paths.