INDIA: $300,000 Crown

When the solid gold top of the Shwe Dagon Pagoda at Rangoon was shaken down by an earthquake (TIME, May 19, 1930), Thomas Cook & Sons may well have mourned. But last week pious Burmese crowned their wonder of the world again with gold. The completed job cost $300,000, was rushed through one year and three weeks after the quake. For good measure and added travelers' delight, diamonds were set into 2,500-year-old Shwe Dagon's new crown.

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