| WAT RACHA BURANA (วัดราชบูรณะ) |
| Wat Racha Burana - also called the Monastery of the Royal Repairs or the Ayutthaya at Tha Wasukri Sub-district. The temple is situated on the corner of the present Chikun Road and Naresuan Road, just opposite Wat Maha That in the vicinity of the former Pa Than bridge. The monastery stood on the west bank of Khlong Pratu Khao Pluak, an important canal, which has been filled up somewhere in the early 20th century. In ancient times the temple was likely fully surrounded by a moat. The structure has been registered as a national historic site by the Fine Arts Department on 8 March 1935 and is part of the Ayutthaya World Heritage Historical Park. History The Luang Prasoet version of the Royal Chronicles of Ayutthaya set its construction in 786 Chula Sakarat (CS) or 1424 of the Christian Era, during the reign of King Borommaracha II (r. 1424-1448) also known as Chao Sam Phraya. "In 786, a year of the dragon, King Intharacha I became ill and passed away. At that time Prince Ai Phraya and Prince Yi Phraya, young sons of the King, fought each other on elephants at Than Forest Bridge and both of them died there. So a young son of the King, Prince Sam Phraya, ascended the royal throne of the Capital City of Ayutthaya and took the royal title of King Bòromracha II. And he then had two holy monuments built to cover that spot in the Municipality of Than Forest where Prince Ai Phraya and Prince Yi Phraya fought each other to the death on elephants. In that year Ratchabun Monastery was founded." [1] King Intharacha (r. 1409-1424) had three sons being Chao Ai Phraya, ruler of Suphan Buri; Chao Yi Phraya, ruler of San Buri; and Chao Sam Phraya, ruler of Chainat located on the northern limit of the Ayutthayan Kingdom that time. Following the death of their father, the first and the second born, led their armies to Ayutthaya in order to claim the throne. Both princes engaged each other in personal combat, mounted on elephant; on or near the “charcoal market” bridge (Saphan Pa Than). Both were severely wounded, their throats slashed open at the same time and died in combat. The youngest brother, Chao Sam Phraya, was then invited to Ayutthaya and proclaimed King under the title of Borommaracha II. The King commanded two chedi built on the site where his brothers engaged in battle. He cremated both his brothers and on their cremation site Wat Racha Burana (1) was built. Not much is known on the history of this temple in the period between its establishment in 1424 and its destruction in 1767. In December 1766 on a late Friday night, a heavy fire broke at Tha Sai (Sand Landing) and spread south along Khlong Pratu Khao Pluak via the Elephant Bridge (Saphan Chang) towards Wat Racha Burana and Wat Maha That to finally stop at Wat Chatthan. The Royal Chronicles mentioned that over ten thousand monastic structures and houses were destroyed in Ayutthaya. It was the same night that the Phraya of Kamphaeng Phet (the later King Taksin) with his followers fled from their encampment at Wat Phichai in Ayutthaya. The chronicles recall that the fleeing group arriving at the Village of the Mixed Pundits on Saturday at two o'clock in the morning, saw huge flames lighting up the city of Ayutthaya. [2] Just before the city was lost to the Burmese, the Ayutthayan chronicles recorded that a crow flew in and spontaneously impaled itself on the finial of the main prang, an event which was considered a bad omen for the city. [3] As illegal diggings in the ruins of the ancient City of Ayutthaya became prevalent in the first half of the 20th century, the government of Prime Minister Phibun Songkram established the "Committee of Restoration of Ayutthaya" in July 1956. A budget was allocated for the restoration and reconstruction of the most important temples. The Fine Arts Department (FAD) started the restoration of Wat Maha That in 1957. In August of that year, archaeologists discovered a number of golden objects on the site. The news of the discovery spread rapidly, with as a consequence the start of an uncontrollable spree of treasure hunting all over the ruined area of Ayutthaya. FAD became aware that illegal diggings occurred at Wat Racha Burana and planned to start excavations immediately. Due to a delay in the planning, a gang of looters returned to the main prang and succeeded in reaching the upper chamber of the crypt on 23 September 1957. [4] The looters plundered a great number of relics interred with the remains of the two princes. Shortly after the police was informed by a drunk amongst the looters, they could recover some of the stolen treasures. An unknown amount of gold has never been recovered as most of the findings were immediately sold to dealers and collectors. In 1958 excavation and restoration of Wat Racha Burana by Fine Arts Department finally began. A number of bronze Buddha images, precious stones, many golden artifacts, including royal regalia, miniature utensils and numerous votive tablets were found in the crypt. [5] The recuperated treasures of Wat Racha Burana were displayed at - a special built for the occasion - Chao Sam Phraya National Museum, named after the third son of King Intharacha. The national museum was inaugurated on 26 Dec 1961 and displayed next to the excavated objects of Wat Racha Burana also the excavated objects from Wat Maha That and other important temples. The proceeds from the sale of some of the votive tablets found at Wat Racha Burana was used to fund the construction of the museum. Architecture Wat Racha Burana at par with Wat Phra Ram, Wat Phutthaisawan and Wat Maha That, followed the Khmer concept of temple construction, and are as thus very similar to each other. We find nearly identical, but earlier built structures at Angkor. Phnom Bakheng, Preah Rup, East Mebon, Baphuon and Ta Keo were all Temple Mountains, consisting of a central tower surrounded by four corner towers, forming a quincunx; the latter also often was surrounded by a courtyard and a gallery. All temples in the early period of the establishment of Ayutthaya were Khmer styled, consisting primary of laterite structures and bricks, enhanced with stucco. Wat Racha Burana was initially built as a basic quincunx surrounded by a covered gallery. At a later stage the monastic structure was expanded with a vihara and ubosot in an east-west axis. The vihara became partly incorporated into the gallery, while the ordination hall stood isolated on the western side. The monastery was surrounded by water, a symbolic representation of the oceans surrounding Mount Meru (represented by the prang). The complex faced Khlong Pratu Khao Pluak to its east and another Lopburi oxbow shortcut canal to the west (name not known by author). Only the walls and foundations remain of the royal vihara. The main entry was in the east, leading to an elevated porch. The structure could also be accessed by different entries on the sides. The walls were windowless, having vertical slit openings, bringing ventilation and providing at the same time a diffused light into the inside. The vihara had a wooden multi-tiered roof structure, which collapsed (burned down). The eaves were supported by pillars with a lotus motif. [6] The ubosot or ordination hall stood in the west, isolated from the gallery. The hall was accessed via an elevated porch. There were two entries in the west and two in the rear, one on each lateral side. The prang of Wat Racha Burana was still in fairly good condition and could be restored. The prang, representing the cosmic Mount Meru, is located in the middle of the ancient compound and is built on an indented pedestal protruding towards the north and south, resulting in a wing-like formation, which was characteristic for prangs of the early Ayutthaya period. The “cella” or central small hall inside the prang containing the crypt, can be accessed through a porch directed towards the east, by climbing the steep stairs leading to the entry of the porch. The prang has three staircases on the east, north and south side. Over the cubic “cella” rises the central tower, the bud-shaped prang. The “cella” housed a Buddha image. On the lowest level of the top-part of the prang are decorated Garuda and Naga sculptures still visible. The two-level crypt under the cella can be reached via a narrow staircase built in 1958 by the FAD. It is warm inside the crypt and the descent is not recommended for people with claustrophobia. The upper chamber is a three meter square room with nearly faded murals depicting Chinese people. Some Chinese characters can still be recognized. The lower cell is so small that only a single person can enter at a time. The murals here are still fairly visible, depicting Buddha with his disciples, trees and birds and some floral art work. Some parts of the pictures were gilded. The badly restored ceiling bears also large tracts of paint. The temple is certainly worthwhile a visit, in combination with Wat Maha That and the Chao Sam Phraya Museum. Wat Racha Burana is located in Geo. Coord.: 14° 21' 31.70" N, 100° 34' 1.77" E. Footnotes: (1) The oldest Ayutthayan Chronicle - the Luang Prasoet - mentions "Wat Racha Bun" or "Monastery of the Royal Merit". References: [1] The Royal Chronicles of Ayutthaya - Richard D. Cushman (2006) - page 15 / Source: Luang Prasoet. [2] The Royal Chronicles of Ayutthaya - Richard D. Cushman (2006) - page 514 / Source: Phan Canthanumat, British Museum, Reverend Phonnarat & Royal Autograph. [3] The Royal Chronicles of Ayutthaya - Richard D. Cushman (2006) - page 519 / Source: British Museum & Reverend Phonnarat. [4] Ayutthaya: World Heritage Reflections of the Past - Ayutthaya Provincial Administration Organization page 26/29. [5] Khruangthongsamay Ayutthaya - Krom Silpakorn (2005). [6] Ayutthaya, a world heritage (2000) - page 104/105. Other consulted works: [1] Discovering Ayutthaya - Charnvit Kasetsiri & Michael Wright (2007) - page 86/87. [2] An outline of the History of Religious Architecture in Thailand - Sonthiwan Intralib ( 1991). |
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| Text by Tricky Vandenberg - April 2010 Photographs by Somchai Pattanavaew & Tricky Vandenberg Updated March 2015 |
| (View of the main prang) |
| (View of the main prang and royal vihara) |
| (General view of the courtyard) |
| (View of the ordination hall) |
| (View of the main vihara) |
| (Stairway to the crypt) |
| (View of the ceiling in the lower chamber) |
| (Garuda sculptures on the base) |
| (Side view of the main prang) |
| (Detail of a 19th century map - Courtesy of the Sam Chao Phraya Museum - map is orientated S-N) |
| (Detail of Phraya Boran Rachathanin's map - Anno 1926) |
| Addendum Bronze tables were found in the middle crypt of Wat Racha Burana. The tables stood in the northern, eastern and western arch of the middle crypt and served as placement for the golden royal regalia. References: [1] Information gathered during the exhibition "Ayutthaya Gold: World Heritage, National Heritage" at the Chao Sam Phraya Museum on 5 November 2016. |
| Addendum by Tricky Vandenberg - November 2016 |