Choijin Lama Temple Museum

A serene monastery complex marooned among the high-rises of central Ulaanbaatar, the Choijin Lama Temple was built in the early 1900s for the state oracle, brother of the Bogd Khan. Five ornate temples with sweeping tiled roofs stand behind a carved gate, holding some of the country's finest religious sculptures, papier-mâché tsam masks and gilded images. Closed as a place of worship after the 1930s, it was preserved as a museum rather than razed. The contrast between the wooden shrines and surrounding glass towers draws photographers.