The five-storey, 30m-high Nyatapola Temple is not only the highest temple in Nepal, but also one of the best examples of traditional Newari temple architecture. From the Arniko Highway or Suriya Binayak Temple, the temple appears to soar above Bhaktapur’s rooftops, with the snow-capped Himalaya as a dramatic backdrop. The elegant temple was built during the reign of King Bhupatindra Malla in 1702, and its design and construction were so solid that the 1934 earthquake caused only minor damage. The stairway leading up to the temple is flanked by guardian figures at each plinth level. The bottom plinth has the legendary Raiput wrestlers Jayamel and Phattu, said to have the strength of 10 men. On the plinths above are two elephants, then two lions, then two griffins and finally two goddesses - Baghini and Singhini. Each fIgure is said to be 10 times as strong as the figure on the level below. Presiding over all of them, but hidden away inside, is the mysterious Tantric goddess Siddhi Lakshmi, to whom the temple is dedicated.