WAT KUTI LAI





Wat Kuti Lai is an active monastery located off the city island in the northwestern area of Ayutthaya on the edge of the Ban Mai Sub-district.

Wat Kuti Lai stood near the right bank of a loop in the old Lopburi River. The loop was later shortcutted by a new dug canal Khlong Bang Khuat (1), named after the village on its track. Wat Tha Sai stood east, while Wat Sam Jin was south.

In situ is an ordination hall on an elevated platform with two porches one porch in the east with two entries and one porch in the west with also two entrances, in the classical east-west alignment. The roof is three-tiered, and the ubosot has five rectangular windows on the northern and southern sides. We can conclude that the hall was built in the late Ayutthaya style (1629 - 1767 CE). The monastic structure is surrounded by a wall, separating the sacred world within from the secular bustle outside. The wall has four gates with three-redented posts, a pointed arch and a colourful gable in the four cardinal directions.




Historical data about the monastery and its construction are unknown.


The site is not indicated on Phraya Boran Rachathanin's map drafted in 1926 CE, as the temple is located on the outskirts of Ayutthaya.


Wat Kuti Lai is in geographical coordinates: 14° 24' 6.80" N, 100° 31' 35.93" E.


Footnotes:


(1) Khlong Bang Khuat is situated off the city island in the northern area of Ayutthaya in the Wat Tum Sub-district. This canal was a shortcut in a meander of the old Lopburi River. The canal is named after the village Ban Bang Khuat where the by-pass canal had been dug. This village was situated on the east bank of the shortcut canal, just north of Ban Suan Yo and Wat Klang Raman. The canal was dug in the late Ayutthaya period.