Wat Baang Aoi Chaang - |
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วัดบางอ้อยช้าง |
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Wat Baang Aoi Chaang is located at 79 Baang Aoi Chaang Village,
Bangkok Noi Canal, Baang Gruoi- Sai Noi street 29, Baang
Gruoi-Sai Noi road, Tambom Baang See Tong, Aumphoe Baang Gruoi,
Nonthaburi Province.
Originally, in the time of Ayutthaya Kingdom, This
“Baang Aoi Chaanng”, or Elephant’s sugar cane village, was once
very rich in wodier trees, hence the name of the community and
its monastery. Woodier trees, called Elephant’s sugar cane in
some Thai dialects, differ from normal sugar cane tree in that
they are perennial plants and have leaf’s shave similar to those
of sacred fig trees. Wodier trees are softwood trees and their
branches spread in layers. Their leaves taste sweet and
astringent and are favorite food of elephants, who also consume
them as medicine. Besides, the trees were used to make elephant
seats for ancient kings when they traveled to battles at a long
distance.
The
community had a duty to send the wodier to feed royal elephants
in Ayutthaya city as a form of tax, thus earning its unique name
as “Baan Suoi Chaang”, or Elephant tax village,
in ancient time.
The previous abbot of the
monastery founded a museum to keep the monastery and community’s
antiques and artifacts. The museum also serves as a learning
center and tourist attraction for the public. It is officially
opened around 2541-2542 B.E. by modifying the previous dining
hall which is a wooden structure of about 100 years of age into
a museum.
The three-story museum houses many relics and
artifacts related to Buddhism. For example, the abbot’s handmade
monk clothes, King Rama V’s talipot fan with the Narayana on
Garuda symbol that goes along with the artistic trend in the
king’s reign, Talum and Pahn Wan Pha, which are various kinds of
trays decorated with ancient high artistry,
Chinese crockery from Qing dynasty’s era, ancient Samut
Khoi ,Thai long books made from khoi tree, samples of
tools and equipment used in Nonthaburi farmers’ daily
life such as pots for durian seeding, pots for rice cooking,
early Chinese handmade jugs and urns that have jade green color.
Tripitaka books, Teak lacquer cabinets that are yet to be gilded
with gold, and gold coffins with devas, Spanish cherry flower
and lotus flower carvings
Baang Aoi Chaang Monastery also
has rare lifted Buddha’s footprint, an art piece from
Ratanakosin era. Kept in the sermon hall of the monastery, the
lifted Buddha’s footprint is a painting of right Buddha’s foot,
gilded with gold and is 54 inch long and 19.5 inch wide. The
paining is more than 200 years old. Beside the Buddha’s
footprint, the sermon hall also has a Dhammas Busshabog Yod Maha
Gathin, or a pulpit throne with four posts and pointed roof
highly crafted and decorate with exquisite Ayutthaya artistry. |
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Nonthaburi |
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District |
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Bang Kruai |
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City |
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Bang Si Thong |
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Temple |
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N/A |
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Entry fee |
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Free |
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Coordinates: |
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13.82060 N |
100.4725 E |
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