Culture

For centuries, temples and palaces were the only places where fine art were displayed. Today, it is still true that to enjoy the full range of the country's wealth of art you must visit at least some of its multitude of religious and royal buildings. But Thailand also has a wealth of folk arts and crafts.
Thai classical art is conventionally divided into five main eras and several lesser ones. The five most important are Srivijaya, Khmer, Sukhothai, Ayutthaya and Rattanakosin. The first two overlapped and were both pre-Thai. The Sukhothai era followed in the 13th and 14th centuries, the Ayutthaya era in the 15th to 18th centuries, and the Rattanakosin era from 1782 to the present.

The establishment of Sukhothai kingdom was a cornerstone in Thai history. The adoption of pure Buddhism as the national religion, as opposed to the Khmer blend of Hinduism and Buddhism, led to the construction of a different kind of temple.

Sukhothai artisans had to turn to Buddhist scriptures for guidance about the alignment, shape, dimensions, and appearance of their temples and Buddha images. The result is sublime, conveying the sense of peacefulness which permeates the teaching of Theravada Buddhism and which characterises the period. Sukhothai is commonly held up as the pinnacle of much of Thai classical art.

Art developed was thoroughly cosmopolitan. Chinese artisans had already helped Sukhothai to produce classical ceramics. Now they introduced to Ayutthaya multi-coloured painting, lacquerwork, mother-of-pearl inlay and at least some forms of music.

This last innovation immediately combined with Indian myth and a Malay tradition of drama to produce an entire range of superb musical theatre from khon (Thai classical dance) all the way down to the bawdy likae, or folk play.


Today, the kingdom's treasury of arts can be seen from the magnificent architecture of temples and murals, from the many Buddha images in various styles and postures, from a range of crafts and performing arts as well as traditional music and folk play.

Architecture
Thai classical architecture reached its peak in Ayutthaya, but much of its temples and palaces were destroyed. What can now be seen was actually built afresh in Bangkok shortly after the destruction of the old city. The best place to go is the Grand Palace.

Its plan, including its alignment with the Chao Phraya River and the location of the various buildings in the courtyard as well as their architecture, is intentionally identical in almost every detail to that of the former royal palace at Ayutthaya. The Temple of the Emerald Buddha is another example. Following convention, scenes from Buddhist cosmology cover the wall behind the Buddha images.

Sculpture
Sukhothai Buddha images represent the apogee of Thai classical sculpture. One good example can be seen at Bangkok's Wat Benchamabopit (Marble Temple) which has a 2.2-metre tall Sukhothai bronze walking Buddha. The same temple also has an exact replica of one of the most venerated Buddha images in the whole of Thailand. This is the 3-metre Phra Buddha Chinnaraj image. The original is at Wat Mahathat in Phitsanulok. The style was developed independently at Sukhothai direct from Sri Lankan Theravada Buddhist texts. Therefore, it represents a kind of orthodox originality that greatly honours its developers. Buddha images were also made using many other materials besides bronze, stone, brick and stacco, terra cotta and wood.

Temple murals
Temple murals reached their glory and perfection in the early Rattanakosin period. Bangkok's Wat Suthat is one of the best places to go. The superb murals, on both plastered masonry and wooden partitions, depict in exquisite detail and with consummate skill both sacred and profane scenes. Other superb examples can be seen at Wat Suwannaram and Wat Thong Thammachart in Thon Buri. Wat Thung Sri Muang in Ubon Ratchathani, Wat Phra Singh in Chiang Mai and Wat Sra Bua Kaeo in Khon Kaen are justly renowned for their fantastic murals. In southern Thailand, visit Wat Huai Toei in Pak Phayun District, Pattani Province.