Wat Traimit The Enlightened Home Of The Golden Buddha
Famous for its Buddhist heritage, Bangkok houses a number of temples that are highly favoured for its architecture or cultural value
. Wat Traimit however is a temple that was rather insignificant.
An insignificant Buddha statue housed in a decaying temple needed a new home and was thus moved to Wat Traimit in 1955. The statue was so big that this temple didnt have enough room for it and for 2 decades it was located under a plain tin roof. It was when a new building was being built at the temple premises that the truth of the statue was discovered.
This Buddha statue was originally in Ayuththaya-the capital of Thailand. Before the invasion of the Burmese, this golden statue was covered in plaster and stucco so that its value would be hidden and thus the statue was spared. This disguise was so effective that two centuries down the line, it was still shunted around without much thought. However on its move to its present home, Wat Traimit, it was accidentally mishandled and dropped into the mud.
A Buddhist monk, came to inspect it whilst it still lay in the mud the next day and discovered the crack in the plaster and the yellowy hue underneath.
On the removal of the plaster it was discovered that the statue was a beautiful Sukhothai style seated Buddha statue cast in solid gold. Not only was it just a golden statue but at over 3M in height and 5 tonnes in weight it was the largest golden Buddha statue in the world.
With its resplendent and beautiful sculpturing, this statue should be on the list of visiting spots for the traveller to Bangkok. Bangkok apartments offer visitors a chance to feel at home whilst still enjoying the luxury of comfort and privacy. Of the Bangkok apartment hotels, the Citadines Bangkok Sukhumvit 16 would be an ideal choice with its prime central location.