South of the Jagannarayan Temple is a tall column topped by a striking brass statue of King Yoganarendra Malla (r 1684–1705) and his queens. Installed in 1700, the column toppled in the 2015 earthquake but was one of the first items to be restored. Looming over the king's head is a cobra, and alighted on the head of the cobra is a small brass bird.
Legend has it that as long as the bird remains, the king may still return to his palace. Accordingly a door and window of the palace are always kept open and a hookah pipe is kept ready. A rider to the legend adds that when the bird flies off, the elephants in front of the Vishwanath Temple will stroll over the Manga Hiti for a drink.
Behind the statue of the king are three smaller Vishnu temples, including a brick-and-plaster shikhara temple, built in 1590 to enshrine an image of Narsingha, Vishnu’s man-lion incarnation.
