Bhutan Ventures into the Digital Realm to Safeguard Its Heritage

Next week, the Kingdom of Bhutan will unveil its inaugural Non-Fungible Token (NFT) initiative—a landmark effort to digitize and preserve centuries-old cultural treasures for future generations. Spearheaded by the Department of Culture and Dzongkha Development’s Museum Division in collaboration with the GovTech Agency and DHI’s Innovation and Technology Department, the Bhutan NFT Project seeks to fuse millennia-old traditions with cutting-edge blockchain technology.

Tradition Meets Technology

At the heart of this initiative lies an 18th-century thangka—an exquisite painting of Zhabdrung Ngawang Namgyal—digitally minted as Bhutan’s first official NFT. Unveiled earlier this month following its creation during a national NFT hackathon last year, this digital thangka is just the first of many planned drops. Future releases will include sacred artifacts, traditional music recordings, and archival documents drawn from the National Museum of Bhutan in Paro and The Royal Heritage Museum in Trongsa.

“The main aim of starting the Bhutan NFT Project is to preserve our country’s culture and heritage,” explains Passang Dorji, assistant curator at the Museum Division. “Additionally, it is to popularize our country’s age-old oral traditions worldwide.”

Tshering Uden Penjor, chief curator of the Museum Division, underscores the broader vision: “Beyond preservation, NFTs have the potential to establish Bhutan as a pioneer in harmonizing tradition with innovative technologies. We will be setting a benchmark for culture preservation in this digital age.”

Why NFTs?

Non-Fungible Tokens are unique digital certificates recorded on a blockchain that prove ownership of a singular digital item. Unlike commonplace digital files, NFTs cannot be duplicated or interchanged. For Bhutan, this means each tokenized painting, musical piece, or document can be securely archived, with provenance and authenticity permanently inscribed on-chain.

Yet the blockchain itself is not designed to store large media files. “Digital files like images and music are not stored directly on the blockchain because of size and cost limitations,” notes Pema Choden, an associate analyst at DHI’s Innovation and Technology Department. “Instead, once minted, they are uploaded to a decentralized file system like IPFS. The blockchain then stores a unique reference—such as a hash or URL—pointing to the actual content, keeping it secure and verifiable without overloading the system.”

A National Strategy in Action

This cultural endeavor aligns with Bhutan’s broader “Intelligent Bhutan” strategy, which rests on three pillars: digital society, digital governance, and digital economy. “Under the digital society pillar, one initiative is to promote cultural and heritage knowledge using digital platforms,” says Garab Dorji, Chief ICT Officer of the Emerging Technologies Division at the GovTech Agency. “By pioneering this NFT project, we hope to promote and preserve Bhutanese culture for those within our borders, the diaspora, and international audiences.”

To facilitate broad participation, the NFTs will be minted on the Ethereum blockchain—chosen for its robust security and widespread adoption—and priced in Ether. DHI will provide a seamless mechanism for buyers to convert their holdings into Bhutanese ngultrum or U.S. dollars.

Preserving the Past for Tomorrow

For traditional-arts advocates like Yeshi Pelden, a painting instructor at the National Institute for Zorig Chusum, the move is both timely and critical. “I see the risk in not adapting to changing times,” she warns. “If we cling solely to old methods—whether in farming or art—we risk falling behind as the rest of the world moves forward.”

By digitizing sacred paintings, musical compositions, and historic manuscripts, Bhutan hopes not only to safeguard its artistic legacy but also to spark new global interest in Himalayan culture. As the first NFTs go live next week, the kingdom stands at a crossroads—one foot firmly rooted in history, the other stepping boldly into a digital future.

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