AYUTTHAYA HISTORICAL RESEARCH



WAT NANG KUI





Wat Nang Kui, or the Monastery of the Lady named Kui, is an active temple located off the city island in the southern area of Ayutthaya, in the Samphao Lom Sub-district. (1)


The monastery is situated along the Chao Phraya River. (2) To its west side lies Wat Khun Phrom, and to its south, Wat Mai Bang Kraja.


The monastery was built in 1587 CE, a few years after the first fall of Ayutthaya. A wealthy woman, Lady Kui, sponsored the construction, hence the temple's name. After the second fall of Ayutthaya, the monastery was left empty and neglected until the Rattanakosin period, during the Reign of King Rama III, when it was renovated.


The temple is known for its sandstone Buddha image, Mae Takhian Thong, and the Luang Pho Yim statue.


Historical data about the monastery is unknown.


The site is indicated on a 19th-century map and Phraya Boran Ratchathanin's map drafted in 1926 CE.


From the temple, you have nearly a straight view of Pom Phet or the Diamond Fort. Therefore, it was surely occupied by the Burmese army in the last battle for Ayutthaya in 1767 CE.





(View of Wat Nang Kui - Picture taken April 2010 CE)



Noh Na Paknam


Noh Na Paknam was a prolific writer, art historian, and preservationist who worked closely with Silpakorn University and the Fine Arts Department and wrote extensively on Thai temples, antiques, and murals. He spent five months in the Ayutthaya area visiting known temples and ruins from November 1966 to March 1967 CE. He visited Wat Nang Kui on 6 November 1966 CE and provided the information below.


"The ordination hall at Wat Nang Kui has been recently renovated and is in a condition suitable for religious ceremonies. It appears to be a large hall with double boundary markers, resembling those from the reign of King Prasat Thong, or perhaps slightly older. They are carved from white sandstone, and the bases are similar to those from the reign of King Narai. It can be inferred that they are probably not much older than the reign of King Prasat Thong. In front of the ordination hall are several twelve-sided stupas, and to the left is a large prang (tower). Since the ordination hall was closed, we didn't have the opportunity to go inside. We plan to visit again another day." [1]





(Double boundary markers at Wat Nang Kui – Picture taken October 2008 CE)



The vihara of Mae Takhian Thong


The vihara of Mae Takhian Thong was built in 2000 CE. The statue of Mae Takhian Thong was handmade from an old Takhian tree that has stood on the temple grounds since its establishment. The local community has worshipped the tree for generations. The Takhian tree is believed to house the female spirit ‘Nang Takhian’, similar to how a banana tree houses the spirit of ‘Nang Tani’. Across Thailand, you will find trees wrapped in cloth, indicating that spirits inhabit them.


In 1995 and 1996 CE, Ayutthaya endured prolonged periods of high flood levels. Many trees died in the years that followed, including the old Thakian tree. Its branches fell onto the Sala Kanparien of the monastery, destroying it. In 1998 CE, the tree was finally cut down. From the large trunk, the wooden image of Mae Takhian Thong was sculpted. Over the tree stump, a vihara was built, and the sculpture of Mae Takhian Thong, containing the tree’s spirit, was placed on top of the old stump.


Wat Nang Kui is in geographical coordinates: 14° 20' 46.45" N, 100° 34' 24.08" E.





(View of the vihara Mae Takhian Thong – Picture taken August 2009 CE)



Footnotes:


(1) Literally, the sub-district of the capsized junk. The area was known before as Ban Samphao Lom. John Bowring wrote in his book "The Kingdom and People of Siam" that "Between the modern and the ancient capital, Bangkok and Ayuthia, is a village called the “Sunken Ship,” the houses being erected round a mast which towers above the surface at low water". [Reference: Bowring, John (1857). The Kingdom and People of Siam Vol I. London, John W. Parker and Son, West Strand. p. 12.]

(2) Not many people realise the Chao Phraya River was not running on the west side of the city island in the Ayutthaya period. At that time, it was the Lopburi River that flowed around Ayutthaya. Today's Chao Phraya River ran through the Bang Ban Canal to Si Kuk and from there to Bang Sai (historical site: Chedi Wat Sanam Chai), where the Lopburi River joined the Chao Phraya River. At the time, the Chao Phraya River was situated about ten kilometres west of the centre of Ayutthaya. The city was linked to the ancient Chao Phraya River in the northwest of Ayutthaya via the Khlong Maha Phram and in the southwest via the Khlong Nam Ya. Steve Van Beeck (1994), in 'The Chao Phya: River in Transition" (Oxford University Press - New York.), writes that "It was not until 1857 that an alternative path was created [for the Chao Phraya River]. A 5-kilometre channel was dug from the entrance of Wat Chulamani to Ban Mai. The river responded by following this new course and abandoning the old one, in effect making a secondary river of the stretch that ran from Ban Mai, and into the Chao Phya Noi. Half as wide as the river above and below it, the 1857 Ban Mai shunt funnels the Chao Phya down to Ayutthaya."



Selected PICTURES



Pictures taken August 2008/9 CE



Pictures Taken April 2010 CE



MAPS



Map 1 - Detail of a 19th-century map. Courtesy of the Sam Chao Phraya Museum. Remark: the map is oriented south.
Map 2 - Detail of Phraya Boran Ratchathanin's map, 1926 CE. Wat Suwandararam, Ayutthaya.
Map 3 - Detail of a 2007 CE Fine Arts Department GIS map. Courtesy of the Fine Arts Department 3rd Region.
Map 4 - Google Earth.



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





HISTORY OF AYUTTHAYA



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