Wat Na Phra Men

Wat Na Phra Men stands on the north bank of the Khlong Sa Bua, the old course of the Lopburi River, facing the site of Ayutthaya’s royal palace. Its name means “in front of the royal cremation ground”, which suggests that royal funerals once took place nearby. What makes it special is that it survived. When the Burmese burned the city in 1767 this temple was spared, possibly because their commanders used it as a base, so it is one of the few places in Ayutthaya where you can stand inside a working Ayutthaya-period hall rather than among ruins.

The ordination hall faces south and is roughly 50 metres long. Inside, rows of octagonal columns topped with lotus buds lead to the main image, a bronze seated Buddha about 6 metres high wearing a crown and royal regalia. The carved gable shows the god Vishnu riding Garuda. In a small chapel beside the hall sits Phra Khanthararat, a seated Buddha carved from green stone in the much earlier Dvaravati period, thought to be well over a thousand years old and one of only a handful of its kind in Thailand.

This is an active temple, so dress modestly and take off your shoes before entering the halls.