Vihara Luang
The Royal chapel was built in 1499 in the reign of King Ramathibodi II, before the construction of the third chedi, which would contain the latter’s ashes. The initial vihara had eleven sections of approximately 4.6 meters in length, totalling 50 meters. The construction stood isolated from the two chedis already built. The building had a front and back porch, with two entries each.
The walls had no windows, but vertical slit openings, bringing ventilation and providing at the same time a diffused light into the inside. Even the back wall had these openings. The gabled roof was supported by two rows of pillars in the chapel's interior and two rows of pillars at the exterior, forming a colonnade on each side of the building, an architectural style from the middle Ayutthaya period. Also, here is Sukhothai art influence visible as some columns still bear capitals in the form of a stylised lotus. As the gables and tiled roofs were wooden structures, it is clear that the chapel must have undergone many restorations.
A pedestal inside the chapel, whereupon once a golden Buddha image stood, can still be seen, including some stucco displaying parts of a lion’s foot. The pedestal in the back has been reduced to a pile of rubble.
The chapel has undergone two major restorations. During the reign of King Prasat Thong (reign 1629-1656 CE), the building was extended at the back so that the 1.6 metres wide stairs of the back porch penetrated and entered the newly built gallery. The second renovation took place during the reign of King Borommakot (1733-1758 CE). The front porch walls were dismantled, and six more pillars were erected to support an additional roof section.