AYUTTHAYA HISTORICAL RESEARCH



PHRA PATHOM





In the "Geographical description of Ayutthaya: Documents from the Palace," there are eight sacred places mentioned outside the city of Ayutthaya, which have been the glory of the capital since ancient times. [1] One of these eight places was Phra Pathom (พระปฐม). Phra Pathom was situated west of the legendary Dvaravati city of Nakhon Chai Sri, in the Phra Pathom Chedi Sub-district, Nakhon Pathom City District.


Nakhon Chai Sri as a Dvaravati City


Nakhon Chai Sri is shrouded in legends. The name "Nakhon Chai Sri" is believed to honour King Chaiyasiri of the Singhanavati Kingdom (1). The exact establishment date of Nakhon Chai Sri during the Dvaravati period is not precisely documented. However, the Dvaravati civilisation flourished between the 6th and 11th centuries, and Nakhon Chai Sri was likely established as a city during this era. The region was significant to the Dvaravati culture, as evidenced by archaeological finds.


During its long, though relatively brief, abandonment, the vast, primitive city of Chai Sri, roughly centred on Wat Phra Prathon, had hardly been altered. More or less ruined and overgrown with bushes, the ancient monuments still appeared around the middle of the 19th century, more closely packed than in Ayudhya, according to the Dynastic Chronicles of the Fourth Reign—covering the reign of King Mongkut (Rama IV), from 1851 to 1868 CE —by Chao Phraya Thiphakorawong.


The reconstruction of Phra Pathom Chedi by King Mongkut, coupled with the establishment of a new urban center approximately four kilometers west of the original settlement, initiated a series of infrastructural developments that profoundly altered the historical landscape. These included the excavation of canals, the construction of a railway line, and the development of the Sanam Chan Palace—originally intended as a royal residence for King Rama VI and subsequently repurposed as the provincial administrative headquarters. The progressive expansion of the regional road network further compounded these changes. Collectively, these interventions accelerated the degradation of the archaeological site and contributed significantly to the destruction of its remaining vestiges. [2]





(Plan of the ancient city of Chai Sri – source: Hennequin, Laurent (2009). Phra Prathon Chedi de Nakhon Pathom. Descriptions du monument et comparaisons.)



Nakhon Chai Sri under Khmer influence


During the reign of King Jayavarman VII (c. 1181-1218 CE), the Dvaravati settlement, named at that time Lavapuri (City of Lava, son of Rama in Hindu mythology), Lopburi became a major western outpost of the Khmer Empire and served as a regional administrative and religious center. Nakhon Chai Sri, like other Dvaravati settlements, must have borne some Khmer influence, but the discovery of Khmer artefacts was somewhat limited.


During archaeological surveys, a cluster of Buddha images was discovered. The statues mainly display features of the Khmer Bayon style, dating from the late 11th to early 14th centuries. Seven Khmer-style Naga-Prok Buddha images (Buddha sheltered by a multi-headed Naga, a mythical serpent) have been found in the Nakhon Pathom area, along with two Naga heads, a sandstone Buddha head fragment, likely also a Naga head, a Shiva lingam, and a yoni base with Somasutra. These findings provide strong evidence that the site of Nakhon Pathom may have maintained religious or political importance during the reign of Jayavarman VII (1122–1218 CE). [3]


“On this visit to Phra Pathom, I took it upon myself to research ancient artifacts and found several Buddha amulets. Upon examining their shape, they appeared to be in the Hindu style, similar to those found in the Malay Peninsula. I also examined the inscribed stones in the Phra Pathom courtyard, and the craftsmanship was similar to those found on Java Island. This evidence suggests that the Phra Pathom Chedi was probably built or commissioned by the people of Middle Thailand. However, the excavated idols resemble Khmer idols, similar to those found in Muang Sang, Muang Sing, Nakhon Ratchasima, and even Khmer cities.” (His Royal Highness Prince Damrong Rajanubhab, 1968)





(Yoni base with Somasutra exhibited at the Phra Pathom National Museum - Picture taken January 2016 CE)



Nakhon Chai Sri in the Ayutthaya era


King Chakkrapat (reign 1548-1569 CE), after the encounter with the Burmese in 1548/49 CE, during which he lost his queen, decided to strengthen the kingdom’s defenses. One of his main priorities was to create three new circles aimed at quickly assembling men in times of war. The village of Talat Khwan was elevated to the city of Nonthaburi, the town of Tha Chin was elevated to the city of Sakhonburi (Sakhon Nakhon), and parts of the circles of Ratchaburi and Suphanburi were combined to form the town of Nakhon Chai Sri. In founding these cities, the benefit was having fighting men surrounding the capital within a day's journey in every direction.

The establishment of Nakhon Chai Sri by King Chakkrapat was not on the site of the ancient Dvaravati settlement, but at Tha Na in the present Nakhon Chai Sri District (the area around Tha Na Old Market) along the Tha Chin River.

“Then the King said, “Few of the inhabitants of the villages and of the third and fourth class cities of the south and of the north entered the Capital this time for the most part they fled out to live in the wilderness and could not be rounded up. Have Tha Cin Village established as the City of Sakhònburi, have Talat Khwan Village established as the City of Nonburi, and have parts of the cities of Ratburi and Suphanburi separated out to become the City of Nakhòn Chaisi.” [4]

Old manuscripts dating back to the Ayutthaya period do show the chedis of Phra Pathom and Phra Prathon. The paintings in the image are from two different manuscripts: Somutphap Traiphumi Krungsri Ayutthaya Chabap thi 6 (The Traibhumi Picture Book of Ayutthaya, Edition 6) and Somutphap Traiphumi Krungsri Ayutthaya Chabap thi 8 (The Traibhumi Picture Book of Ayutthaya, Edition 8). According to research by the Fine Arts Department of Thailand, these manuscripts are believed to date to the late Ayutthaya period. One source suggests that Edition 6 dates from the late 22nd to early 23rd Buddhist century, corresponding roughly to the reigns of King Prasat Thong and King Narai the Great. It is noted that the manuscripts from the Ayutthaya period often feature a style of ancient Thai script called "Thai Yo," which helps to date them.

Phra Pathom, located west of the ancient Dvaravati-era city, held great importance during the Ayutthaya era, as noted in "Geographical description of Ayutthaya: Documents from the Palace," which lists it among the eight sacred places outside the city of Ayutthaya. The site was easily reached by boat from Tha Na on the Tha Chin River via Khlong Bucha (Worship Canal).





(The Traibhumi Picture Book of Ayutthaya - Source: Picture published in Ref 2)



The legend of the establishment of Phra Pathom


There are only a few issues, all related to the names "Nakhon Chai Si" and “Phra Praton Chedi,” "Phra Pathom Chedi," “Phraya Kong,” and “Phraya Phan.” These names appear in documents including the Northern Chronicles, the Phra Pathom Chedi Legend, the Phra Prathon Chedi Legend, the Phraya Maha Araknikorn version, the Nai Thong version, the Phraya Ratchasamphanakon version, the Tapakhao Rot version, and the version of Nai Ong Waikalang (Fine Arts Department 1985). These documents tell similar stories but are undated. The stories mentioned across the various documents can be categorized into two main narratives: the story of Nakhon Chai Si and Phra Pathom Chedi, and the story of Phra Pathom Chedi and Phraya Kong-Phraya Phan. Below is the story of Phra Pathom Chedi and Phraya Kong-Phraya Phan. [5]


The story takes place during the Dvaravati period, spanning from the 7th to the 11th century CE, when Chai Sri was still a coastal city in the Gulf of Thailand. The history of Phra Pathom Chedi is narrated and recorded differently. It generally follows that Phraya Kong was the ruler of an area around Nakhon Chai Sri. The ruler of Rat Buri was a tributary to Nakhon Chai Sri. Phraya Kong's queen became pregnant, and the royal soothsayer predicted that if the child were a son, he would kill his father and take the throne. Like Moses, the newborn was placed in a basket in the river and left to be found.


A woman named Yai Hom (grandmother Hom), who raised ducks along the river, found the baby and named him Phan. Phan grew up to be an intelligent man, became a favourite of the ruler of Rat Buri, and was eventually adopted as his son.


Phan, seeing the yearly tributes of gold and silver presented to the ruler of Nakhon Chai Sri, offered to wage war against the latter to free Rat Buri. The ruler of Rat Buri consented, and Phan, with a large army, launched an attack on Nakhon Chai Sri. Phan besieged the city, killed his father, Phraya Kong, and tried to take the queen for his wife. The queen recognised her son at a scar on his forehead, and Phan finally discovered the truth. Enraged, he killed Hom, the woman he was raised by, for not telling him the truth.


Becoming suddenly conscious of his wrong actions, Phraya Phan ordered the construction of two stupas in an act of expiating his sins: one stupa in memory of his father, the Phra Pathom Chedi, and the Phra Prathon Chedi for Yai Hom. Both chedis remain very important until the end of the Ayutthaya period.





(Dharmachakra representing the Buddha's teachings and the path to enlightenment excavated at Nakhon Pathom and exhibited at the Phra Pathom National Museum - Picture taken January 2016 CE)



The rediscovery of Phra Pathom


In 1831 CE, Prince Mongkut, then a monk named Phra Wachirayan Thera at Wat Samorai (today Wat Rachathiwat) in Bangkok, undertook a pilgrimage to a jungle ruin in Monthon Nakhon Chaisri. The ruin at that time was still in an impressive state and referred to by the local people as Phra Banthom (2).


The Chronicle of the Fourth Reign states that, after examining the monument's ancient construction and materials, the prince concluded that it had been rebuilt multiple times over the centuries.


Apparently anxious not to damage the ruined stupa, Prince Mongkut had various test pits dug in the largest of the brick piles rising in the immediate vicinity. The excavations, carried out to depths of 1 to 1.5 meters, uncovered a foundation course made of large bricks measuring 50 cm in length, 24 cm in width, and 12 cm in thickness. The bricks were proportionally regular but slightly larger than typical Dvaravati bricks, which usually measured 30–35 cm long, 15–18 cm wide, and 6–8 cm thick.


Prince Mongkut concluded that the piles of bricks and the foundation course belonged to the original stupa. The stupa had long since collapsed, and the fallen bricks had been gathered and piled up there by the people. [6]





(AI-generated reproduction of the original pre-Ayutthaya stupa)



A new circular chedi, likely inspired by a Sinhalese stupa, was built. The conical chattravali probably fell over, and around that time, the top part of the stupa was cleared away, with a prang constructed where the spire used to be. The prang was likely added in the Ayutthaya period (1351-1767 CE).


At the edge of the levelled surface, a wall was built, providing a pathway between the base of the prang and the shoulder of the stupa for the circumambulation ritual (Pradakshina).


An access staircase had been added from the base to the shoulder, and a careful examination revealed that the one on the prang itself was likely a later addition. (3)


The recorded dimensions were as follows: The base was 4 to 5 wa (4), or between 7.92 and 9.90 meters in height, with the differences explained by the ground not having been thoroughly levelled. The dome or anda was 14 wa high and 2 sok, or 28.69 meters. The prang was 20 wa, approximately 39.62 meters, topped by a noppasun (a symbolic finial, a nine-pointed spire) 8 sok, approximately 3.84 meters, high, which gave an average height of 39 wa and 10 sok, approximately 82 meters, for the entire stupa. (5) [7]





(AI-generated reproduction of the stupa in the Ayutthaya era based on the dimensions given in the Chronicle of the Fourth Reign)



In the time of Prince Mongkut, four sanctuaries stood side by side to the east of the chedi, housing statues of the Buddha, more or less ancient, which have been preserved, variously restored, and updated: to the southeast, the Phra Nak Brok, an image of the Buddha protected by the Naga next to it, the reclining statue known as Phra Buddha Saiyat, referred to above. Then came various other statues, and finally, in the easternmost sanctuary, the seated statue "in the European style," known as Luang Pho Sila Khao, was found at Wat Phra Men and in the immediate vicinity of the sanctuaries stood, in a row, several small stupas.

The sanctuaries were considered contemporary with the stupa itself. Numerous laterite pillars still survived at the site where the king was to have built a Chinese-style pavilion for the distribution of alms in cash.

Another sanctuary hall, intended for community ceremonies, must have existed at the site where the ordination hall was built. It had collapsed, was rebuilt, and was designed for the same purpose.

To the south of this last sanctuary, the monks' living quarters must have stood. "Significant traces, for example, a pool and a brick-paved causeway," were still visible. Unfortunately, we do not know the age of these structures the only certainty is that they date, at the latest, from the reign of Rama I (1782-1809 CE), the founder of the Chakri dynasty, since it was at this time that the monks were relocated.

Prince Mongkut asked his elder brother, Rama III (King Phra Nang Klao, 1824-1851 CE), to renovate the ruin. Still, it was refused due to the considerable expense it would have entailed and because the monument, then located in the middle of the jungle, would have been unlikely to attract many visitors. The main reason for the refusal seems to have been financial. [8]




(Maquette of the chedi Phra Pathom as seen in the mid-19th century, not to be confused with the model of the stupa created by the corps of military artisans – Picture taken August 2023 CE)



The initial restoration

The official restoration of the ruin began on 1 January 1853 CE under Somdet Chao Phraya Borom Maha Prayurawongse, born Dit Bunnag (1788-1855 CE), who oversaw the construction. A model of the stupa was created by the corps of military artisans to ensure an accurate execution, as per the king's wish. This model reproduced the silhouette and proportions of the ancient monument. The project's execution began, and 200 laborers, divided into four teams, worked on it for months. First, the stupa and its immediate surroundings were cleared, while the nearby canal – Khlong Chedi Bucha - was cleaned at the same time. (6)

In 1853 CE, the base was expanded to include the old structure and served as the foundation for the planned outer structure, which had already reached a height of 8 sok (almost 4 meters). To expand the base, local people sold bricks from other ancient temples at the site, while additional bricks were made to order, thereby accelerating the work. Unfortunately, this led to the disappearance of many old sites. (7)

In 1855 CE, the Chao Phraya in charge of directing the construction died, and the King appointed his son, Phraya Thiphakorawong Mahakosathibodi, born Kham Bunnag (1813–1870 CE), to succeed him. The latter was also the author of the Chronicle of the Fourth Reign—formally titled Phraratchaphongsawadan Krung Rattanakosin Ratchakan Thi Si.

Mon people, immigrants from Burma, had been hired to shape the bricks, and slaves were used for the same work to repay debts. Chinese workers partly did the firing and laying of the bricks. As the construction of the outer structure reached a height of 10 wa (nearly 20 m), each of the various officials responsible for the site had a small votive stupa erected nearby Phra Pathom, bearing their name. Apparently, nothing remains of it.

In 1858 CE, after observing a second luminous phenomenon during festivities at the site, the king decided to rename the site Phra Pathom Chedi, as there was no larger pagoda in the whole kingdom. (8)

The construction now reached a total height of 17 wa 2 sok (approximately 35 m), having progressed by about 15 m in just under 3 years.

In 1860 CE, on Thursday night, August 2, a rumbling sound was heard around the base. After two days and nights of rain, the masonry could no longer withstand the pressure exerted by the flooded ground, and the entire reconstructed section collapsed. The disaster had a twofold cause: 1. the absence of a walking platform, which could have provided a footing, a foundation, large enough to distribute and contain the pressure 2. an upper part of the chedi that was far too heavy for a base too weak (only 1.50 to 2 m high) to support it.

It is doubtful that the new masonry could have collapsed without taking a large part of the old ruin with it, especially since it had already reached about 35 meters, while the original chedi, base, and dome measured only around 38.5 meters—the extent of the damage clearly called for a significant change in the plan for the second reconstruction. [9]





(Painting of the restoration plan of Phra Pathom in the eastern vihara – Picture taken August 2013 CE)



The second restoration


It became necessary to restart the reconstruction using different plans. To ensure the structure's stability, it was apparently decided to avoid attaching the new masonry to the remaining unstable parts. Instead, it was to be built as shown in the schematic painting inside the East Vihara, as a massive, hollow monument, utterly independent of the original chedi.


It was decided to carefully level the ground, adding earth if necessary, since the chedi's surroundings presented significant unevennesses that had not been taken into account during the first reconstruction, before any work began.


Abandoning the original plan, the model of the so-called "Sinhalese" stupa was adopted, featuring a raised cone of a chattravalï instead of the old prang, as seen today. The dimensions of the various parts of the stupa having been carefully determined, the plans were submitted to King Mongkut for approval.


Based on astrological data, the favorable time to begin the work was set at "Thursday, the fourth day of the waxing moon of the eleventh month of the year 1222 of the Little Era, the year of the Monkey, the second of the decade" or 1 November 1860 CE. To enable the creation of this vast hollow structure, it was essential to erect an immense formwork—a temporary framework upon which bricks could be carefully positioned and secured. Composed of wooden beams and pillars, sometimes reinforced with chains, this scaffolding was meticulously tailored to suit the unique contours of each vertical segment of the stupa.


During King Rama IV's reign, the surrounding area experienced significant growth. Four sanctuary halls were built at the four cardinal points, designed to house images of the Buddha that either came from the old temple or were created specifically for the occasion. A circular gallery with an open veranda facing the outside connected the four sanctuary halls, forming the inner and outer terraces. On the outer terrace, bell towers were erected while the surrounding wall was built. Inside the enclosed area, large amounts of earth were brought in to create access terraces at the four cardinal points, with landscaped gardens at each of the four corners. The land was reshaped into mounds and small hills with caves and tunnels. The goal was to create sites around the chedi that, through planting selected tree species, represent some of the most important places where the Buddha lived, starting with the most sacred area of Mahabodhi.


The stupa was not finalized at the time of King Mongkut’s death. Work continued throughout almost the entire reign of King Rama V (Chulalongkorn), with the completion of the chattravali, the construction of the galleries, and the laying of the glazed yellow ceramic tile covering, which was still under construction in 1881 CE and 1908 CE. The restoration was carried out in conjunction with the creation of a new community around Phra Pathom and the establishment of Nakhon Chai Si Province, which completely demolished many old stupas. (His Royal Highness Prince Damrong Rajanubhab). [10]





(Phra Pathom Chedi – Picture taken August 2013 CE)



Buddha seated in the European style


Wat Phra Men, south of Wat Phra Pathom, was excavated by Chao Phraya Dibâkaravanéa, the second in command at the Phra Pathom Chedi construction site. The stupa, or caitya, complex on the site likely contained four large limestone Buddha images (3.76 meters high) arranged around a central structure. These images are seated with legs pendant (bhadrasana), with the right hand raised in a teaching gesture (vitarka mudra) and the left resting on the knee. This posture is rare in Southeast Asia but appears in Dvaravati art, often interpreted as influenced by Gandharan or Gupta traditions, dating to the 7th–8th centuries CE. The style indicates a syncretic blend of Mahayana and Theravada iconography, possibly reflecting esoteric practices.


Thanit Yupho (1907-2004 CE), who was Director-General of the Fine Arts Department in the 1960s, believed that two of the large Buddhas of Wat Phra Men were moved from Nakhon Pathom to Ayutthaya during the reign of either King Ramathibodi I (1350-1369 CE) or King Ramathibodi II (1491-1529 CE). With the founding of Ayutthaya and the construction of numerous new temples, there was a growing need for ancient Buddha statues. [11]


Two heads of white stone Buddha images were found at Wat Phraya Kong and one at Wat Khun Phrom in Ayutthaya. The two stone Buddha heads were large and heavy, and they were smashed apart to make transportation on a boat easier. Later, someone collected them and sold them to a shop in Weng Nakhon Kasem. The Fine Arts Department discovered this and returned the pieces to Ayutthaya for display at the Chao Sam Phraya National Museum. Meanwhile, the white stone Buddha image at Wat Khun Phrom was moved to the museum in December 1962 CE. Sadly, the statue pieces got mixed up, and the parts no longer fit together.


Missing fragments were found in the gallery of Phra Pathom Chedi (installed during Rama V's reign), then transported to Ayutthaya. An artist named Mr. Sawet Tettham finished the first Buddha image in 1964 CE. It is now displayed at the Chao Sam Phraya National Museum in Ayutthaya and serves as a key reference for Dvaravati iconography.





(The Dvaravati-era Buddha image restored in 1964 CE and displayed at the Chao Sam Phraya National Museum in Ayutthaya – Picture taken November 2016 CE)



The remaining pieces could be assembled into two more complete images. The provenance records were incomplete, and its connection to Wat Phra Men is inferred from the stylistic parallels and Dupont’s early documentation. Missing parts were filled with plaster. The second image was completed in 1966 CE and is now housed in the National Museum in Bangkok. The third image was assembled at Wat Phra Pathom Chedi on the south side in 1967 CE and is officially called “Phra Narachet”. [12]





(The third Dvaravati-era Buddha image restored in 1967 CE and installed on the south side of Phra Pathom Chedi – Picture taken August 2013 CE)



The fourth image, believed to be connected to the original group from Wat Phra Men, was already placed in the ordination hall of Wat Phra Pathom by order of King Mongkut, who oversaw the reconstruction of the chedi and its surrounding chapels. The image was discovered in the mid-19th century, buried under a large anthill in Wat Phra Men by laypeople and monks searching for bricks during the restoration of Phra Pathom. It was then moved to Phra Pathom Chedi in 1861 CE.


Since then, the nearly intact statue has been placed in the ordination hall (ubosot), where it continues to be worshipped. It has undergone slight renovations, particularly to the upper garment, which was shortened before being restored. The image is often called “Luang Pho Sila Khao” by residents because of its presumably white colour.





(The fourth Dvaravati-era Buddha moved from Wat Phra Meru to Phra Pathom Chedi in 1861 CE – Picture taken August 2013 CE)



Footnotes:

(1) The connection between the Singhanavati Kingdom and Nakhon Chai Sri lies primarily in the etymology of Nakhon Chai Sri's name. The Singhanavati Kingdom is an ancient and semi-legendary kingdom in what is now northern Thailand. It is thought to have existed before the rise of more well-documented civilisations such as the Hariphunchai and Lanna Kingdoms. The Singhanavati Kingdom is traditionally linked to early Mon and Tai migration into Southeast Asia. The kingdom was supposedly near present-day Chiang Rai, close to the Kok River. "Singhanavati" translates to "City of the Lion," possibly reflecting Buddhist and Hindu influences in its founding mythos. While historical evidence about Singhanavati is limited, some scholars suggest that it existed as early as the first millennium CE, predating the Dvaravati civilisation in central Thailand.
(2) The site was initially called Phra Banthom (พระบรรทม) or Sleeping Buddha at the time of the visit of Prince Mongkut (Thiphakon Wong 1961, vol. 2, 114). The denomination Phra Banthom suggests that the Buddha ‘symbolically’ had slept here, maybe physically represented by a large statue of a reclining Buddha known by the name of Phra Pathom, an image "four wa" long, which perhaps corresponds to the 9-meter-long one that King Rama VI had recast and preserved today in the western vihara as Phra Buddha Saiyat. (Boisselier, 1978)
(3) The “shoulder” of a stupa refers to the transitional zone between the drum (medhi) and the dome (anda).
(4) The pre-1923 wa was based on the traditional Siamese fathom it varied slightly by region and had the metric equivalent of 1.981 meters. The wa was based on human proportions—similar to a fathom. It wasn’t precisely defined and could vary slightly depending on local customs or the individual used. In 1923 CE, Thailand officially adopted the metric system. The wa was redefined as exactly 2 meters, making it consistent across all applications—especially in land surveying and legal documents.
(5) Although the Chronicle indicates, about ten lines later, a different total height (45 wa 1 sok, approximately 89.62 m), the proportions correspond fairly well to those of the model monument, while those of the later painting differ quite significantly.
(6) A waterway was the only means of access to Phra Pathom Chedi in all seasons, and it was essential at that time to the operation of the construction site.
(7) Same as in Ayutthaya. The Ayutthaya monasteries were sacked and plundered by the Burmese and further dismantled after the fall of Ayutthaya to reconstruct the Siamese capital in Bangkok. Most parts of the wall and the forts were dismantled during the reign of King Rama I (1782 - 1809 CE), who had the bricks used to construct the city walls of the new capital, Bangkok. In 1784 CE, bricks from the ruins of Ayutthaya were used to build a barrage in the Lat Pho Canal at Phra Pradaeng to halt the intrusion of saline water farther inland. Another round of collecting building material occurred in the reign of King Rama III (1824-1851 CE) when remaining bricks and laterite stones including those of the Thamnop Ro causeway and the Elephant Bridge, were sent down to Bangkok to be used in the construction of a giant stupa, a copy of Ayutthaya's Chedi Phukhao Thong, called Wat Saket which collapsed into rubble. Ayutthaya's temple bricks were also used to strengthen the bed of the Bangkok-Ayutthaya-Lopburi railway at the end of the 19th century. When, in the last century, demand for antiques increased and amulet markets mushroomed, Ayutthaya's ruins were plundered once more. During the fifties and early sixties, witnesses recall, locals in the Ayutthaya area commonly collected bricks from the ruins. The Department of Religious Affairs agreed to allow merchants to dig up bricks from abandoned temples and load them onto boats to sell. The bricks were locally used to expand other temple sites, but mainly were sold to contractors and shipped in large quantities due to demand from Bangkok. Trucks and boats from Bangkok collected the bricks at 20 Baht a load.
(8) In 1853 CE, barely a year after work started, "on the fifth day of the 'white' (or waxing) moon of the second month of the Year of the Ox, the fifth of the decade, in the year 1215 of the Little Era, a little after 9 p.m.," a luminous manifestation, described at length in the Chronicle, was observed in the northern part of the monument. (Boisselier, 1978)





(Phra Pathom Chedi – Picture taken August 2013 CE)



References:


[1] Pongsripian, Vinai, Dr. (2007). Phanna phumisathan Phra Nakhon Sri Ayutthaya: Ekasan jak Ho Luang. Geographical description of Ayutthaya: Documents from the palace. Bangkok: Usakane. p. 107.

[2] Srisapingkhanun, S. (2014). Archaeology of Nakhon Pathom: A study of the past of the center of Dvaravati. Bangkok: Department of Archaeology, Faculty of Archaeology, Silpakorn University.

[3] Hennequin Laurent. Une visite à Nakhon Pathom en 1908 par Lunet de Lajonquière. In: Aséanie 17, 2006. pp. 151-168.

[4] Cushman, Richard D. & Wyatt, David K. (2006). The Royal Chronicles of Ayutthaya. Bangkok: The Siam Society. p. 41.

[5] Srisapingkhanun, S. (2014). Archaeology of Nakhon Pathom: A study of the past of the center of Dvaravati. Bangkok: Department of Archaeology, Faculty of Archaeology, Silpakorn University.

[6] Boisselier Jean. La reconstruction de Phra Pathom Chedi. Quelques précisions sur le site de Nakhon Pathom.. In: Aséanie 6, 2000. pp. 159-189.

[7] Ibid.

[8] Ibid.

[9] Ibid.

[10] Ibid.

[11] Interview of Mr Thanit Yupho, former Director-General of the Fine Arts Department, by Mr Prathum Chumphengphan, former head of the Chao Phraya National Museum, on 7 February 1986 CE.

[12] Ibid.



When the past no longer illuminates the future, the spirit walks in darkness.
(Alexis de Tocqueville)





HISTORY OF AYUTTHAYA



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