Ayuthaya Things to Do Tips by Blatherwick

The three bell-shaped chedis of Wat Phra Si Sanphet are the symbol of Ayutthaya. The wat was built by King Boromatrailokanat in 1448. It was one of the grandest temples in the ancient capital, and is still one of the best preserved on the island. The three large chedis were built to contain the ashes of King Boromatrailokanat and his two sons, King Ramathibodhi and King Boromatrailokanat II.

The temple was originally connected directly to the royal palace. The temple took its name from the large standing Buddha image erected there in 1503. The image stood 16 meters (53 feet) tall and was covered with more than 150 kilograms (330 pounds) of gold. The Buddha was smashed to pieces and the palace building were leveled when the Burmese sacked the city. King Rama I collected the remaining pieces of the Buddha and placed them in a chedi at Wat Po in Bangkok. Most of the bricks were used to build the new capital.

There is a fee of 30 Baht to enter the grounds of Wat Phra Si Sanphet. The temple is open from 8:30 am to 5:00 pm.

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Phone: 035-322-730-1
Directions: The temple stands almost in the center of the main area of the old capital.

The Bronze Buddha image at Wat Mongkol Bophit is one of the biggest images in Thailand. Phra Mongkol Bophit has been identified as the image of the Buddha which King Chairachathirat had ordered sculpted in 1538 A.D. at Wat Chichiang.

The chronicles mention that in 1610 A.D. King Songtham ordered the image known as Phra Mongkol Bophit to be moved from the east to the west and commanded the construction of a mandapa to house it. In 1612 A.D. an order was carried out to level the earth in front of the vihara so that cremations could take place there.

From available evidence we know that King Chairachathirat ordered the building of Wat Chichiang and a chedi in the vicinity of a cremation spot, and the casting of an image. King Songtham close to limit the area for cremations to the central part of the town, near Wat Chichiang; this was the reason for moving the Buddha image (Phra Mongkol Bophit) to a new spot in the Western sector, after which its original site was used for a cremation area.

In the reign of King Sua (1697-1706 A.D) lightning struck the top of the mandapa and it collapsed; The head of Phra Mongkol Bophit fell of. As a result the King had the mandapa rebuilt and turned into a vihara. In the reign of King Borommakot (1732-1758 A.D) another restoration took place. When Ayutthaya was sacked the vihara was apparently burnt.

The Phra Mongkol Bophit image was last restored in 1955 A.D. At that time a quantity of buddha images were found on the left shoulder of Phra Mongkol Bophit. They are now kept in the Chao Sam Phraya National Museum.

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Address: Directly south of Wat Phra Sri Sanphet.

King Ramathibodi I (U-Thong) founded the city of Ayutthaya in 1350 A.D. At that time he ordered the building of a royal palace in which to live. It was located at what is now Wat Phra Sri Sanphet. The royal palace was inhabited by successive kings for 98 years.

King Borommatrailokanat ascended the throne in 1448 A.D. and having handed over the former palace to be used for activities related to the wat, set up his new palace in the sector north of the former royal dwelling, near the Lopburi River (the northern city moat). These royal halls were lived in by sixyeen kings during ascended of 182 years.

King Prasathong enlarged the palace so that parts of it adjoined Wat Phra Sri Sanphet, and commanded the construction of two additional royal halls.The royal palace in the later stages of Ayutthaya numbered six halls and was lived in by ten kings throughout a period of 137 years until the sack of the capital in 1767 A.D.

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Address: North of Wat Phra Sri Sanphet.

Wat Phra Ram was built by King Ramesavara at the cremation ground of his father, King U-Thong in 1369. There are many renovations but the great one occured in 1941. In front of the temple there is a large lake called Bung Phra Ram. It is presumably the natural lake which was enlarged because the dirt was removed for the foundation of many temples nearly.

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Directions: Access to the NE of corner of Thanon Si Samphet and Thanon Pa Thon.

You can see the new City Pillar Shrine to the right of the old City Pillar Shrine.

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Address: Thanon Si Samphet