AYUTTHAYA

WAT MAHATHAT in AYUTTHAYA

                   Wat Maha That or the “Monastery of the Great Relic” is located on the city island in the central part of Ayutthaya in Tha Wasukri sub-district. The temple is situated on the corner of the present Chikun Road and Naresuan Road. The monastery stood on the west bank of Khlong Pratu Khao Pluak, an important canal, which has been filled up somewhere in the early 20th century. In ancient times the temple was likely fully surrounded by canals and moats. The structure has been registered as a national historic site by the Fine Arts Department on 8 March 1935 and is part of the Ayutthaya World Heritage Historical Park.

                 Wat Mahathat (Temple of the Great Relics) is located almost right in the center of Ayutthaya. Apart from being the symbolic center where the Buddha's relics were enshrined, Wat Mahathat was also the residence of the Supreme Patriarch or leader of the Thai Buddhist monks. The temple is believed to be built during the 14th century A.D. (the early Ayutthaya period). The main prang collapsed during the Ayutthaya period, but was restored. It collapsed again in 1911, so only the foundation of the main prang remains at present.
                  However, it can easily be judged from the size of the base, that the prang was quite high. As in most architecture of the early period of Ayutthaya, the main prang was the most important edifice in the temple compound.
   
(The well known image of the Head of the Buddha, with tree trunk and roots growing around it. Wat Mahathat, Ayutthaya.)
Details: The site is open daily from 08:00 a.m. to 06:30 p.m. and admission is 30 Baht.

How to get there: From Bangkok to Ayutthaya then cross King Naresuan bridge to second intersection turn right. Next from the Rama Lake you will see Wat Phra Mahathat. And take a tuk-tuk from the centre of town.

For tourists, Wat Mahathat offers the much photographed Buddha head, embedded into a tree trunk.