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Wat Kamphaeng Laeng - |
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วัดกำแพงแลง |
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Wat Kampaeng Laeng was originally a Hindu shrine which was built
around 1200 – 1250, during the reign of King Jayavarman VII of
the Khmer Empire. The outer wall was constructed from piled
sandstone blocks. The temple façade is located at the front.
Wat Kampaeng Laeng was a work of Bayon art. In the past,
there were five prangs facing east. The main prang was located
in the middle and four other prangs were founded on the four
directions. At present, there are only three prangs left. The
architecture is decorated with motifs in Bhramanism, such as
kanok, deity, lion and garuda. Each prang is a shrine which
houses figure of gods; that is, Brahma, Vishnu, Shiva, Lakshmi
and Kartikeya.
When Wat Kampaeng Laeng was built, the propagation of
Buddhism had not yet spread to Petchaburi and the Bhramans was
in power since ancient times. At the time, the Khmers stretched
their empire to the area around Chao Phraya Basin. The fertile
land was one of the settlements where they had the shrine built
according to Khmer tradition. When Buddhism became a prominent
religion in the area, Bhramanism subsequently faded out.
Kampaeng Laeng was converted into a Buddhist temple before being
abandoned at a later time.
During the period of
Ayutthaya, more brick buildings were constructed in the area of
the Buddhist sanctuary. The original sandstone wall was reserved
so the temple was named ‘Wat Kampaeng Laeng’ or ‘the
sandstone-wall temple’.
The prangs at the temple are part of ancient
remains dating back to the Lopburi era. The Bhramans built the
prangs from sandstone, which was made from a kind of mineral
that was mixed with clay and became the stone (sandstone) that
was cut into blocks as needed.
Inside the temple wall, there is a baray or a
large rectangular pool. As there were already plentiful water
sources nearby, it is assumed that the pool was built so that
there was spare material for the construction of other
buildings. |
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Province |
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Phetchaburi |
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District |
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Mueang |
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City |
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Tha Rab |
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Temple |
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Best exposure |
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n/a |
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Opening time |
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n/a |
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Entry fee |
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Free |
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GPS : |
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13.1055 N |
99.9562 E |
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