Wat Muang

Situated on the west bank of the Mae Klong River in Ban Pong, Wat Muang is an old Mon temple dating to the Ayutthaya period over 300 years ago, according to a palm-leaf manuscript written in Mon script. It boasts beautiful Mon architecture and art, such as round pagodas and the ordination hall adorned with a pair of swans, a Mon symbol. The principal pagoda is in a shape called "chom hae", referring to an outline of a fishnet raised with curved lines at the rims. It is decorated with stucco motifs in the shape of traditional necklaces called "sangwal". The lower part of the top, called "plong chanai", was painted gold, the peak topped with a royal metal umbrella.

The Wat Muang Folk Museum provides background on the art, culture, religion, education, way of life and knowledge of the Thai Mon in the Ban Muang community, also dating back more than three centuries. It was founded by temple abbot Phra Khru Worathamphithak (Lom Kotchaseni) and local villagers who gathered objects for display there. The objects include thousands of Buddhist scriptures, wrap clothes, pottery, old documents, weapons, religious objects, housewares, farming tools, apparel and kitchenware. The museum focuses on the simplicity yet meaningfulness of local history, culture and way of life. It depicts the long history of Mon people in the Hanthawaddy period and in the reign of Burma's King Bayinnaung and the nine major migrations of the Mon from Burma to Siam, from the Ayutthaya period until the Thonburi and Rattanakosin periods. [Source: Bangkok Post]

Ayutthaya Historical Research