The vest and other accessories of the rain deity were found under the rubble of the temple at Bungmati that had collapsed due to the 7.8 magnitude rattling.

A search team including Nepal Army and other security forces had handed over the box containing the vest to a guthi looking after the temple in the presence of Culture Minister Deepak Amatya.

A temple guthi official confirmed that the vest was found on the 24th day after the temple crumbled. “We have recovered the box where we keep the precious item and other accessories,” he said.

The search for the bhoto had begun a week after the earthquake. Search teams had recovered gajurs (pinnacles) of various gods and goddesses of the temple, the statue of Bhimsen and jewellery pieces earlier in the week.

The 12-year festival of Machindranath, which falls this year, began on April 19 after the placement of the Rato Machindranath deity’s idol on a cone-shaped wooden chariot in Bungmati of Lalitpur. The chariot procession commenced on April 22, but was put on hold following the earthquake last month.