Wat Phumin
Encyclopedia
Nan, Thailand
Nan is a town in Northern Thailand. It is located some 668 km north of Bangkok. Its population exceeds 24.000. It is situated in the centre of the province which bears its name, and of which it is the administrative capital. It covers the whole tambon Nai Wiang of Mueang Nan district, an area...
's most famous wat
Wat
A wat is a monastery temple in Cambodia, Thailand, or Laos. The word "wat" means "school".- Introduction :...
is renowned for its cruciform ubosoth
Ubosoth
A phra ubosot is a building in a Buddhist Wat. It is the holiest prayer room, also called the "ordination hall" as it is where ordinations take place....
which was constructed in 1596 and restored during the reign of Chao Ananta Vora Ritthi Det (1867-1875).
Exterior
It is the only temple which was built as if it were on the back of two immense snakes (or Nagas).Each of the four entrances is preceded by a small corridor topped by a finely decorated point shaped structure (underlining the royal origin of the temple) and is equipped with smoothly carved doors; with Chinese demon guards in the East, flowers in the North and forest life motives in the Lanna
Lanna
The Kingdom of Lanna was a kingdom centered in present-day northern Thailand from the 13th to 18th centuries. The cultural development of the people of Lanna, the Tai Yuan people, had begun long before as successive Tai Yuan kingdoms preceded Lanna...
style in the West and South.
Interior
The watWat
A wat is a monastery temple in Cambodia, Thailand, or Laos. The word "wat" means "school".- Introduction :...
's interior is impressive. It is also a good example of Thai Lue architecture. The structure of the roof is supported by twelve teak
Teak
Teak is the common name for the tropical hardwood tree species Tectona grandis and its wood products. Tectona grandis is native to south and southeast Asia, mainly India, Indonesia, Malaysia, and Burma, but is naturalized and cultivated in many countries, including those in Africa and the...
pillars decorated with gold on black and red lacquer
Lacquer
In a general sense, lacquer is a somewhat imprecise term for a clear or coloured varnish that dries by solvent evaporation and often a curing process as well that produces a hard, durable finish, in any sheen level from ultra matte to high gloss and that can be further polished as required...
and elephants motives. The ceiling is also finely decorated. The flowered altar
Altar
An altar is any structure upon which offerings such as sacrifices are made for religious purposes. Altars are usually found at shrines, and they can be located in temples, churches and other places of worship...
resting in the center of the bôt supports four Buddhas
Buddharupa
Buddharūpa is the Sanskrit and Pali term used in Buddhism for statues or models of the Buddha.-Commonalities:...
of the Sukhothai
Sukhothai kingdom
The Sukhothai Kingdom ) was an early kingdom in the area around the city Sukhothai, in north central Thailand. The Kingdom existed from 1238 till 1438...
style in the pose of Bhūmisparsa mudrā ("Buddha Invoking Mother-Earth", "Bhumi to be His Witness" or "Buddha subduing Māra
Mara
-Social groups:*Mara people, in northeastern India and western Myanmar* Mara language, a language spoken by Mara people*Mara Salvatrucha, a violent criminal gang in Mexico, Central America, Canada, and the United States...
" - the hand pointed down to the earth with the fingers touching the ground), facing the four directions. The shape of the ears and nose shows a Lao
Lao people
The Lao are an ethnic subgroup of Tai/Dai in Southeast Asia.-Names:The etymology of the word Lao is uncertain, although it may be related to tribes known as the Ai Lao who appear in Han Dynasty records in China and Vietnam as a people of what is now Yunan Province...
influence. Next to the altar one finds a splendid thammdat (a dhamma seat used by teaching monks).
Murals
Well preserved murals of great value illustrating the Khattana Kumara JatakaJataka
The Jātakas refer to a voluminous body of literature native to India concerning the previous births of the Buddha....
on the Northern wall and the Nimi Jatakas on the Western wall as well as scenes of the local life of the time when they were painted by Thai Lue artists during the restoration of the temple at the end of the 19th century. Europeans can even be noticed: a reference to the arrival of the French
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
to whom the East of the Nan valley area was yielded in 1893. The style is rather distinctive and quite removed from the traditional style of temple paintings in Thailand. They somewhat resemble the style of the murals of Wat Phra Singh
Wat Phra Singh
Wat Phra Singh is a Buddhist temple in Chiang Mai, Northern Thailand....
in Chiangmai and are very much like the murals of Wat Nong Bua in Amphoe Tha Wang Pha
Amphoe Tha Wang Pha
Tha Wang Pha is a district in the central part of Nan Province, northern Thailand.-History:The minor district Tha Wang Pha was established on October 1 1962 with area split off from Pua district...
, just north of the city of Nan. The setting of the murals at Wat Phumin however, is that of the culture and everyday life of the Thai Lue people. The two most famous scenes are of greater dimensions than the majority of the other paintings: a man whispering to the ear of a woman (on the Southern side of the Western door) and the portrait painted on the side of the Southern door, which could be king Chao Ananta Vora Ritthi Det. The large paintings on each side of the main entrance show a Chinese influence which can be explained by the origins of the Thai Lue people.