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Sukhothai was the capital
of an
early Thai kingdom at around 1239. Now
some of the religious remain are still visible, preserved and
maintained to offer a great showcase of past Thailand. Bangkok or Sukhothai
is the usual trip direction to visit the place. The old Sukhothai
Park or historical park is the usual
destination for tourist visitors to the city this is at least for
tourists. |
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The fastest trip is naturally by air with Bangkok Airways to their
privately run airport, hotel prices are from about Baht 2200,- to
Baht 3200,- , note that Bangkok Airways almost always charge the
highest prices for flights in Thailand.
Cheaper
flights could be done via Phitsanulok airport by Nok Air. Both towns of are very close and good connected. Sukhothai is almost dead in the
night, Phitsanulok has a thriving nightlife which is more in the
karaoke bars direction it cant match
Bangkok nightlife or
Phuket nightlife but it’s a reasonable.
Also the Phitsanulok hotels
especially around the bridge
over the river are good and have reasonable prices, from about Baht
800,- per night upwards. As you can imagine,
as elsewhere in Thailand there are plenty of restaurants. There are
quite a lot of Thai restaurants worldwide which use the name Sukhothai restaurant. can be found in many cities around
the globe.
Buses are available from
Bangkok and Chiang Mai plus other city, this long haul |
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buses take passengers on the way.
The bus
from Bangkok’s Mo Chit bus terminal
( the BTS Bangkok terminal is very
close) several
times per day. There is also a train
option via Phitsanulok train station
from there a minibus or taxi will
take about 30 minutes ride, all this
is good organized and works.
Rush hours are
between 7am-9am and 4pm-6pm. At
those times don’t get on the road in
Thailand.
The city is one of Thailand's highlights,
the well
arranged historical park is monumental and brings insight into the past.
The well maintained remains of temples, pagodas
and monasteries are a showcase of the glorious past. Most of the
non sacral buildings before the 19. century are not existing anymore (its a similar situation as in
Bagan Myanmar
and Ayutthaya) since they were built from wood and
were wiped out by fires from time to time the masonry work of the
temples, pagodas and monasteries protected them from
vanishing.
Sacral buildings in Thailand
and the countries around were usually built with bricks, that means many are still visible only the roof is gone sometimes, as you
can see in the park pictures below. There
are some
hotels nearby to make
your stay easy and comfortable. |
World
Heritage by UNESCO
came
In 1991, the place was declared the 358th after the Thai Fine Art department submitted a nomination.
Known history started more or less in the 13th century
when a town with this name was founded.
Sukhothai pictures
Stone inscriptions
found at Wat Si Chum tell a Khmer leader with the name Sabat Khlon
Lamphong conquered the city and became the ruler, the remains of
the centuries are integrated into the hisyorical park.
was introduced and Sukhothai expanded
as far as Vientiane in present day Laos. In 1438 the King of
Ayutthaya integrated the city into his Kingdom.
Around the middle of the 13th century A.D.. a town
named |
Old Sukhothai Buddha |
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Sukhothai was founded. According to the
stone inscription found at Wat Si Chum. a Khmer
warrior named Sabat Khlon Lamphong besieged
Sukhothai
after the death of Pho Khun Si Nao Nam
Thom. its first ruler. Pho Khun Pha Muang who was a
ruler of Muang Rat and a son of Pho Khun Si Nao Nam
Thom joined forces with Pho Khun Bang Klang Hao,
more, is comrade, in driving away the enemy. Pho Khun Pha
Muang then gave his comrade the Sword of Victory and
also the title of Si
Inthrabodinthrathit and
consecrated him as Pho Khun Si Inthrathit. a ruler
of Sukhothai and the founder of Sukhothai dynasty.
Some more information is available at the Sukhothai
Historical Park
.
Sukhothai grew prosperously and stretched
wide during the reign of Pho Khun Ramkhamhaeng, the
third king and a son of Pho Khun Si Inthrathit.
Sukhothai
today
all necessary information is composed into the
leaflet the traveler or tourist gets together with
the entrance ticket at the ticket counter. Including
a map and other information about
Thailand.
From Bangkok to Sukhothai by
bus great
views and panoramas of central Thailand can be
enjoyed. The trip
goes via Nakhon Sawan and Phitsanulok.
Actually this could be integrated into a greater tour of
central Thailand since also Tak and Mae Sot at the Thailand
Myanmar border is not far.
If one does this journey
it almost a must to extend it from Mae Sot down to Umphang
where great river rafting trips, mountain jungle, Karen
villages and the biggest waterfall in Thailand and probably
whole Asia is to be discovered. Its a great outdoor
trip.
At Sukhothai and
Phitsanulok
are enough good hotels to have a pleasant stay.
Phitsanulok has even a great Thailand style nightlife
with a few nightclubs, Thai style cafe and the usual massage
parlors. To explore Sukhothai province
and get an idea of Sukhothai history and the old kingdom
brows our website and have a look for the beautiful
video.
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Around the 13.th
Century the kingdom
extended as far as Phrae Nan and Vientiane. The King Pho Khun Si Inthrathit
introduced Theravada Buddhism
which was prevalent in Nakhon Si Thammarat into
hiskingdom. The
cultural foundation of Sukhothai was laid by ho Khun
Ramkhamhaeng who upheld Buddhism and supported the
arts. He created for the first time the Thai
alphabet. He gathered different principalities under
his control. He was a powerful king who applied the
teachings of Lord Buddha in ruling his Kingdom in
peace and prosperity.
The security and stability of Sukhothai were built
undeniably through the charisma of Pho Khun
Ramkhanhaeng. Without him, the Kingdom of Sukhothai
became weaker. A number of principalities liberated
themselves and declare their independence. According to the stone inscription, in 1347 A.D. Phra Maha Thammaracha Li Thai. Pho Khun
Ramkhamhaeng's grandson who ruled over Si
Satchanalai, led his troops marching into Sukhothai
and killed the enemy. Ascending the throne he
finally brought back unity in his Kingdom.
During the reign of Phra Maha Thammaracha Li Thai.
the King expanded his territory in all directions.
He. at the same time. fostered Buddhism. He invited
to his kingdom Venerable Phra Maha Sami from Nakhon
Phan.
Theravada Buddhism was flourishing.
With deep faith
in Buddhism he himself entered the monkshood in 1362
A.D.
Phra Maha Thammaracha Li Thai was a king of great
competence. He composed a religious writing known as Trai Phum Phra Ruang. By his command. a bronze
image of Buddha was made to be enshrined at Wat
Mahathat This Buddha image was later called "Laung
Pho To" by Sukhothai people during the early
Rattanakosin period and was removed. by the
command of King Rama I. to be installed in the Royal
Chapel of Wat Suthat Thepwararam in Bangkok. The
name. Phra Si Sakaya Muni. was finally given to this
Buddha image by King Rama II. Fifty years after the death of Phra Maha Thammaracha
Li Thai around 1370 - 1371 A.D. : later kings who
were the descendants of Phra Maha Thammaracha Li
Thai reigned over Sukhothai under the influence of
the Suphannaphum dynasty of Ayutthaya.
Through
intermarriage
between members of the two dynasties. penetration
into aristocratic system and exertion of forces :
the
Ayutthaya kings made every effort to gradually
dominate over Sukhothai and they finally did it. In
1438 A.D. the king of Ayutthaya sent his son whose
mother was a old Sukhothai princess to rule over the
northern region at Pitsanulok as Maha Uparat
(viceroy). Sukhothai then became part of the
northern region which was
annexed to the Ayutthaya Kingdom. |
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The Town Wall of
Sukhothai
has a
rectangular layout and is 1,300 meters wide and
1.800 meters long. To defend Sukhothai against enemy
attack. two outer
earthen ramparts and an inner wall of earthen
structure covered with laterite were
built with moats in between serving as channels to
carry away water for flood prevention. A town gate
and defensive tower were constructed in the middle
of each side of the wall. Some of the remains are
still in the Sukhothai Historical Park.
Wat Mahathat at
Sukhothai
Situated in the heart of the town, this significant
temple is believed to be the place where Lord
Buddha's Relics has been
enshrined. Its main chedi in lotus bud shape
characterizes the typical style of Sukhothai art
presumably, the main stupa
was
originally constructed in prasat shape like the
style of those surrounding on its four sides.
Located between the north and south of the principle
chedi. a standing Buddha image of 9
meters in height is believed to be Phra Attharot as mentioned in
Stone Inscription I. There is a group of stupas situated to the south of
the main chedi.
At its centre stands the one with
five spires. second to the main chedi in size.
According to the inscription on golden palm leaf,
it is believed that the relics of Phra Maha Thammaracha Li Thai has been placed in this stupa.
Several great Buddha Statues are at
different places in the park.
Palace at Sukhothai
It
was formerly believed that the Palace of Sukhothai
had been located on the brick base known as Noen
Prasat in front of Wat Mahathat. But the excavation
of this ancient monument undertaken twice by the
Fine Arts Department of Thailand could not give any evidence to
verify the said supposition. Moreover. an old map in
the reign of King Rama V of the Rattanakosin period
indicates that. Noen Prasat is remains of the
building pertaining to Wat Mahathat.
Based on the stone inscription found at Wat Sorasak
and a study conducted in comparison with the layout
of a Khmer palace in Angkor Thom, the palace of
Sukhothai is
likely to be located to the north of Ta Pha Daeng shrine and to the west of Wat Sorasak.
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Ta Pha Daeng Shrine Sukhothai
Situated within the town wall adjacent to the
northern town gate, this shrine was built in Khmer
style during Angkor Wat period (1107 - 1157 A.D.).
Several god and goddess images carved from stone
were found in situ. These stone images are now
displayed at the Ramkhamhaeng National Museum in
Changwat Sukhothai. This ancient monument serves as
evidence for the embrace of Khmer culture during the
early Sukhothai period.
Wat
Si Sawai at Sukhothai
Important ancient monuments in this temple include
three Khmer-style cone shaped stupas situated to the
south of Wat Mahathat. Fragments of images of Hindu
gods found in situ and a Siva image enshrined in the
porch of the second stupa in the middle indicate
that these ancient monuments were associated with
Hinduism and Saivaism. This Hindu sanctuary was
afterwards transformed into a
Buddhism temple by
adding a wihan to its front.
Monuments outside the Town Wall
of
Old Sukhothai
Saritphong
In
the west of Sukhothai. there is a row of hills known
as the Prathak hill range stretching out as far as
the eye can see and forming a beautiful background.
This range of hills abundant in vegetation of all
kinds including herbs also serves as a receptacle
for
rainwater. Out of local wisdom of the Sukhothai
period, this ancient earthwork of large size was
constructed between two hills. namely Khao Kiew Ai Ma and Khao
Phra Bat Yai in order to carry water into canals for
irrigation and water supply in Sukhothai. This
earthen dike is believed to be mentioned in Stone
Inscription I as Saritphong. According to the said
stone inscription. water from Saritphong was brought
along a southwestern canal named Sao Ho into the
town. At present. in cooperation with the Fine Arts
Department. Saritphong has been developed by the
Royal Irrigation Department to retain water up to
400.000 cubic meters.
Wat Saphan Hin
This
Old Sukhothai temple is well known for a huge
standing Buddha, the stone inscription tells. "In
the heart of the forest Aranvik. there is a
beautiful larae wihan a Buddha image called Attharot in standing posture...". Wat Saphan Hin is
supposed to be the temple where Pho Khun
Ramkhamhaeng went on a white elephant named
Ruchakhiri to worship a Buddha image every Buddhist
Sabbath day. An ascent of 300 metres long from the
foot of the mound to the temple was built and paved
with stone from which the name of the temple derived
Wat Pa Mamuang
Situated in the west of Sukhothai, this temple was
mentioned in several stone inscriptions of the
Sukhothai period. Stone Inscription VI found at this
temple refers to the importance of the temple as a
place where Phra Maha Thammaracha was ordained as a
priest in 1362 A.D.
At present, buildings in the temple include the
ordination hall and chedis. The temple is not far
away from Thewalai Mahakaset where bronze images of
Hindu gods like Vishnu. Siva and Brahma in Sukhothai
style were found.
Wat Tra Phang Thong Lang
This ancient monument at Sukhothai is known for
stuccoes
relief decorated on three sides of the wall of its mondop.
These relief. made by local craftsmen of Sukhothai
under the influence of Ceylonese style during the
period of Polonnaruwa. depict the story of Lord
Buddha. The northern side deals with an episode of
Lord
Princess Pimpa. his wife, the southern side depicts
Lord Buddha descending from heaven after preaching
his mother and the western side deals with Lord
Buddha preaching his father and the Sakayawong clan.
Wat Phra Phai Luang
Located adjacent to the outer rampart wall of
Sukhothai, this ancient temple bears evidence of the
evolution of art and architecture during the
Sukhothai
period. Important ancient monuments in this temple
include 3 prasat style buildings. Two of them are
still in existence. Stuccoes reliefs found in situ
are similar to those decorated on the southern porch
at the main stupa of Wat Mahathat in Lop Buri. All
these serve as evidence for the diffusion of Khmer
influence through Lop Buri.
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Evidence found
in this Sukothai chedi points to the fact that
new chedis were rebuilt in different periods of time
to replace the To the east of these prasats of Khmer
style is situated a chedi in pyramid shape with a
superimposed receding porch on every side. This
chedi was built in the same style as a chedi of Wat
Ku Kut in Changwat Lamphun. There are many other monuments around
Sukhothai. The best way to explore the
beautiful location is to hire a bicycle
at the park’s entrance.
It is also possible to drive into the
park by car for a extra fee.
It makes sense to use this means of
transport since the area is large and its
quite hot over the
whole year.
Old Sukhothai is a must see destination in Thailand.
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