For your first visit to the Barkhor, enter from Barkhor Sq, a large plaza that was cleared in 1985. The square has been a focus for violent political protest on several occasions, notably in 1998 (when a Dutch tourist was shot in the shoulder) and most recently in 2008. The square is now home to metal detectors, riot squad vehicles, fire extinguisher teams (to prevent self-immolations) and rooftop surveillance. Despite the stream of tour groups the atmosphere is one of occupation or siege.
The addition of a tacky Dico’s fast-food joint at the west end of the square is ill-considered, though at least the party authorities resisted the temptation to plunk a Mao statue in the middle of it all, unlike in almost every other provincial capital.
Close to the entrance to the Jokhang a constant stream of Tibetans follows the Barkhor circumambulation route in a clockwise direction. Look for the two pot-bellied, stone sangkang (incense burners) in front of the Jokhang. There are four altogether, marking the four extremities of the Barkhor circuit; the other two are at the rear of the Jokhang.
Behind the first two sangkang are two joined enclosures. The northern stele is inscribed with the terms of the Sino-Tibetan treaty of 822. The dual-language inscription delimits the Chinese-Tibetan border and guarantees mutual respect of the borders of the two nations – an irony seemingly lost on the Chinese authorities. The southern enclosure harbours the stump of an ancient willow tree, known as the hair of the Jowo, allegedly planted by Songtsen Gampo’s Chinese wife, Princess Wencheng, and two stele, one of which was erected in 1793 to commemorate victims of a smallpox epidemic. Over the centuries Tibetans have chiselled out chunks of the stele for its proported protective medicinal properties.
