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The majority of the gold collection of the Chao Sam Phraya National Museum is from the crypt of the main prang at Wat Ratchaburana. It also includes artifacts discovered at other monuments such as Wat Mahathat, Wat Phra Ram, Wat Chai Wattanaram, Wat Pradu Songtham, Wat Yai Chai Mongkhon, etc.
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The collection is divided into two rooms. The first room is named Wat Ratchaburana, and the other Wat Mahathat. The first room has the treasures exclusively from Wat Ratchaburana, while the second keeps all the gold pieces from the other wats in Ayutthaya, having the reliquary placed on the magnificent throne in the middld of the room. A part of thr treasures from Wat Ratchaburana is currently on display in the National Museum, Bangkok.
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The gold collection of the Chao Sam Phraya National Museum can be divided into eight categories : articles of royal regalia, princely ornaments, royal vessels, Buddha images, tributary items, offerings to the deceased, inscriptions and relics of the Buddha.
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Articles of Royal Regalia
The royal regalia of the Ayutthaya period comprised five articles, all of which follow the specifications of the ancient royal tradition derived originally from India : Victory Crown, Sword of Auspicious Victory, Walking Stick, a pair of Fan and Fly-Whisk, and finally a pair of Shoes.
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According to the historical accounts, in the early Bangkok period especially at the coronation of King Rama II, two more articles were added to the five ; Diadem and State Umbrella.
The most important article of royal regalia found at Wat Ratchaburana by the archaeologists is the Victory Sword, 115 cms long. The double-edged blade is made of iron, which has partly been rusted off. Its scabbard is made of gold, and studded with various gems. The mouth of the scabbard is elaborately decorated with various floral motifs and flame-like vegetal designs. The hilt is octagonal made of glass, and gold is coated along the eight edges. The handle is hexagonal, but rounded at the tip which is beautifully decorated with precious stones.
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Unfortunately, it is said that the Victory Crown was taken by the looters, as well as other precious headdresses in various forms and sizes. The other regal articles found at Wat Ratchaburana include a shoe, fan, fly-whisk and sunshade. All of them are miniature imitations specially fabricated as funeral deposits, but made extremely elaborate. For example, the fly-whisk is made of handful of gold threads.
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Princely Ornaments
The royal costumes were also found in the crypt, which included exquisitely patterned salongs, shirts and shawls. Being made of fragile fabric, all of them were totally deteriorated as they were exposed to the air when the archaeologists tried to remove them from the crypt, in which they had been sealed for more than five centuries. Only those made of gold thread survived including headdresses, various types of necklaces, armlets, bracelets, bangles and rings.
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Headdresses
There are two important headdresses among the finds of princely ornaments ; one for prince and the other for princess. The former is a small crown beautifully adorned with all sorts of gems, probably to wear on the topknot. On the other hand, the latter is made of thin gold wires woven into a bonnet with floral motifs on the sides and the top. Its general shape follows the hairline of a lady, with the circle in the rear for the bun. This was probably for a princess not only to adorn her hair but also to keep it tidy.
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Neck and Chest Ornaments
There are three different types of decorations worn around the neck and the chest, namely Krong So, Sangwaln and Tap Suang.
Krong So type is made of a number of flat gold plates, put together to wear around the shoulders. The middle piece is bigger and much more elaborate than the rest, having its lower and pointed in the form of a flower, studded with various gems. It is also outlined with small floral motifs decorated with gems.
Sangwaln and Tap Suang : Diverse type of Sangwaln type necklaces were found, mostly broken into pieces. They are exquisitely decorated with motifs and studded with gems, the central one larger than the others. Strings of small pearls are attached along the lower rim. Interestingly, some decorative motifs are similar to those popular in Islamic art. Many necklaces made of beads and small bells have also been found. Some others have beautiful pendants attached to the elaborate chains.
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Armlets
There are two types of armlets among the arm ornament ; Phahurat and Thong Phra Korn. Phahurats are slightly larger than the bracelets, but usually have pointed upper part, and the lower part curves upward following the outline of the upper rim. In contrast, Thong Phra Korn is plain, cylinder-like, made of flat rectangular gold plate rounded and joined at the ends. All the armlets are of masterful workmanship, exquisitely decorated with floral motifs and studded with gems.
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Bracelets
Many bracelets are strings of beads or small bells.
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Bangles
Gold bangles not only for wrist but also for ankle are found in a large number. Some are plain, while other have exquisitely incised decorations. Usually the small ones are solid, and the large ones are hollow.
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Rings
Hundreds of rings in various sizes have been discovered in the crypt. Some large ones could have been for toes. Many of them bear the traces of being worn out. Among them the most interesting ones are those studded with ruby in the carved settings of lion, cow with suckling calf, flowers, etc.
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Royal Vessels
Many elaborate utencils were discovered in the crypt including cosmetic containers such as tray, stemmed plated, covered boxes to keep perfume, powder, bee-wax and medicinal herbs. Another important category of the vessels is the betel-nut sets comprising the holders of lime, areca-nut and vetel leaves, together with the tray and spittoon.
Besides the above-mentioned utilitarian articles, other miniature decorative and ceremonial objects are also found. An exquisite container is composed of body and the lid connected together with gold chain, which could have been snuff box. Weights are in the form of watercraft in various sizes both in gold and silver, each set put together with chain. A cluster of areca-nuts which might have been ritual object for royal ceremonies. The gourd-shaped ceremonial vessel with the elaborate lid and the elongated leaves on both sides of the base. On one leaf is carved an celestial being, and on the other is three-headed Naga surrounded by tendril designs. The lid is sculpted into the four-faced Brahma. The prostrated elephant is one of the masterpieces discovered in the crypt, which might have been a princely wedding present. The miniature animal in gold decorated with gems, is very naturallistically mounded with its trunk raised to uphold a garland.
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Buddha Images
The gold Buddha images found both at Wat Ratchaburana and Wat Mahathat can be divided into five groups : Gold plaques in relief ; Buddha Images cut out of sheetgold ; Buddha image in relief portrayed in niche under the Bodhi tree ; Bigger Buddha images in high relief made of gold plate in the styles of U Thong II or Early Ayutthaya ; and Buddha images in the round with thick hair curls standing in the style of the Dvaravati peroid. One Sri Lanka image in meditation belongs to this group.
Besides the gold Buddha images mentioned above, silver Buddha images are also found in a large quantity. Most of them bear the influences of Angkorian, Sukhothai and U Thong arts.
Two Hindu images are also found in the crypt, holding a club and wearing Angkorian dresses, yet with strong Thai workman-ship.
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Tributary Items
Among the finds from the crypt there are a few evidently foreign objects that might have come to Ayutthaya as tributes. They include Chinese gold covered box in the form of a lion and Arabian gold metals.
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Offerings to the Deceased
It has long been a funeral custom that valuable and cherished belongings of the deceased are deposited together with the ashes of the dead. The ralatives make votive offerings specially fabricated for the occasion in the gesture of making merits.
Most of the treasures found in the crypt at Wat Ratchaburana were the possessions of the two princes, both died in the elephant dual as mentioned in the beginning. Some part of them must have been inherited to them from their royal ancestors. Naturally they are older than the early 15th century when the main prang was constructed to enshrine their ashes. A large number of votive objects were probably made by the third prince. Their close followers must have donated their treasures to the deceased as the token of their homage. Among the votive objects the most important pieces are Buddhist in nature such as the miniature chedi, Bodhi tree, Bodhi leaf and an ornate prang in gold about one meter high. This particular piece is damaged, but has all the details minutely represented, probably made as a copy of the original prang at the wat. The architectural style in general is Khmer but with naturalistically sculpted as it is in Thai architecture. Besides, there are three miniature chedis found in the crypt, one of which enshrined a gold Buddha image covered in a smaller chedi in glass.
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An inscription is also found in the miniature chedi, which bears the imformation written in chmer script that the court Brahmin named Si Chandra Phanu Chaiwat dedicated these holy objects to the deceased in the gesture of merit making. This particular chedi is domeshaped in the typical Sri Lankan architectural style, and is beautifully studded with gems on the floral motifs.
Also found are the various mythical creatures of the Himavanta forest including hamsa bird, celestial horse, elephantine lion, elephant with wings, along with celestial beings. Utilitarian vessels including betelnut sets are also discovered, along with ceremonial articles. Animals of longevity such as fish and turtle are found abundantly.
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Inscriptions
Many fragmentary inscriptions are found in the crypt. The most important among them are the five, written on gold plates. The imformations on three of them are included in an article of the Silpakorn Journal published in September, 1985. the other two are written in the Lanna Thai script in Pali language of the 15th century. They contain verses form the Dhammapada of the Tripitaka. The details can be found in the Inscriptions of Thailand Volume V published in 1986. Other insciptions are on less precious materials such as tin, silver, and on the back of baked clay votive tablets. Many of the votive tablets bear inscriptions written in Chinese, suggesting that the Chinese comunity in Ayutthaya was well established, and the Buddhists in the community fabricated a large number of them to deposit in the crypt to make merits for the two deceased princes.
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The Relics of the Buddha
The worship of the Buddha's relics which had flourished in Sukhothai with the influence of Sri Lankan Buddhism, continued on to the early Ayutthaya period, As the Kingdom's prestige and pride the royal monasteries named Wat Mahathat, Wat Phra Ram and Wat Ratchaburana were established in the capital to enshrine the relics of the Buddha as well as the remains of the Buddha's prominent disciples. They were found in the chedis and prangs erected at the cardinal points in the monateries.
Especially, the relics discovered in the crypt of the main prang at Wat Mahathat are believed to be the genuine relics of the Buddha, which is in the size of one third of a rice grain kept in the sandal oil in the gold casket. The casket was then encased by seven layers of miniature chedis, one on top of the other, each made of tin, silver, gold and copper alloy called Nak, evony, rosewood, glass and finally gold. Her Royal Highness Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn paid a visit to the Chao Sam Phraya National Museum to pay homage to the Buddha's relics on March 11, 1986 on her way to Burma.
The gold treasures from the ancient capital of Ayutthaya are invaluable cultural relics of the Thai people, and the officers of the Chao Sam Phraya National Museum feel extremely proud, as well as responsible, in taking care of these masterful artifacts date from the 15th century.
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