Wat Phra Sing (1345 onward)     other sites in Chiang Mai    Chiang Mai, Thailand

                                                    
   Click on the above images for larger views

Wat Phra Sing was built in the 14th century by King Phayco of the Mengrai dynasty.  It may have been the first monastery to house the Emerald Buddha, a cultural treasure that now resides at the royal palace in Bangkok.  Wat Phra Sing currently houses Pra Thongtip, the most venerated Buddha statue in northern Thailand.  Cast in 1477, it is made of an alloy of gold and copper.

Bibliography:

    Aasen, Clarence.  Architecture of Siam: A Cultural History and Interpretation
    Oxford University Press.  Oxford.  1998

    Cummings, Joe.  Thailand
    Lonely Planet Publications.  Singapore. 1990

  All images copyright 2000 by Professor Robert D. Fiala of Concordia University, Nebraska, USA

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