Shey is situated 15 kms. south of Leh, Shey was once the capital of Ladakh. The Shey Palace is the smaller version of Leh Palace and is crowned by the golden chorten. It is well known fo its 12 mts. Shakyamuni statue made of copper & plated with gold. This statue is the largest in the region. The statue was constructed by Teldan Namgyal in 1633 and it is the funerary memorial to his father Sengee Namgyal. There are several chambers out of which one has got huge feet of Lord Buddha with soles pointing upwards.

One of the balcony gives the view of massive Buddha statue painted with gold and has tightly curled blue hairs. There is also a magnificent collection of paintings of Lord Buddha, Bodhisattva and Mahasiddhas. A small walk to the fields leads you to a temple built by Sengee Namgyal which enshrines a huge statue of Shakyamuni built by Nepalese craftsmen. The descendents of these metal workers still live in an isolated village of Chilling which is well known for its traditional silverware.