Nepal; preparing the Bisket chariot, Bhaktapur, 1986

Nepal; preparing the bisket chariot, Bhaktapur in the Kathmandu Valley, 1986. Carpenters prepare the chariot which will carry effigies of the goddess Bhadrakali and her spouse Bhairav for the Nepalese Hindu New Year festival of Bisket which is held in the month of Baisakh (usually mid-April), at Bhaktapur. The chariot becomes the prize of a mammoth tug-of-war between the eastern and western halves of the town. The winning side plays host to the divinities for the next 7 days.