Description  Exploring the Old Lamphun road & beyond

Return 52 kms. Lamphun station is 2 kms from the old town. Regular buses begin at Chang Puak (No. 1) bus station and may be caught at the start of the old Chiang Mai-Lamphun Road near the Nawarat Bridge.)

Lamphun remains a small provincial town on H 106. The quieter pace of the city makes it an attractive destination for those interested in historical culture. The old city is in the shape of an oval surrounded by lotus-filled moats and by the River Kuang on the east side.

The chronicles tell how some Buddhist monks wished to establish a city and invited Queen Chamadevi from Lopburi to be the first ruler (a statue of the queen stands in a small park near the south-west corner of the old city moats). The city was part  of the Mon Dvaravati civilization which developed along trade routes from the Gulf of Martaban to the Chao Phraya River basin and beyond to the north and east.

Queen Chanadevi’s dynasty lasted till the mid -11^th century, when the city may have temporarily been evacuated due to a cholera epidemic. However it remained as the centre of the valley until it was captured by Mangrai in 1281. Mangrai used the city as his capital for four years before seeking a better place. From the foundation of Chiang Mai in 1296, Lamphun has been dominated by its northern neighbour.

Two chedi that are the sole intact remains of the Dvaravat civilization  in Thailand stand in the grounds of this temple.

The larger of the two chedi is a square stepped pyramid made of laterite. Known as the Mahapol Chedi (or the Suwan Chang Kot Chedi), the original chedi dates back  at least to the 10^th century. It has since been enlarged and renovated. The four sides at each level contain three standing Buddha images in niches. The frames around the niches are highly decorated with stucco. The chedi at Wat Chedi Liem in Wiang Kum Kam is a copy of this design.

A second smaller octagonal chedi of similar age is known as the Ratana chedi. It has eight standing Buddha images in the first section above its base. The adjacent modern viharn contains a mural that depicts King Viranga of the Lawa throwing a javelin towards the city.

This temple is one of the most famous temples in Northern Thailand. Large lions guard the main entrance gate that faces the River Kuang to the east. A reclining Buddha image fills a small building nearby.

The temple grounds form a square with a 46 metre high chedi at its centre. The chedi is said to have been built on the side of Queen Chammadevi’s palace. Construction on the chedi probably began in the late ninth century but it was enlarged at the beginning off the 12^th century. The chedi took its final shape in the reign of King Tilokarat in the 15^th century.

The parasols at the corners and on the pinnacle of the chedi were placed by Kawila.. the nine-tiered umbrella at the top is said to be made of over  68 kilograms  of gold. The chedi is in the Sri Lankan style which reflects the origins of Theravada Buddhism in the region. On the full moon day of the sixth lunar month, an annual homage and bathing ceremony of the Phrathat is held.

The main viharn, a large structure containing the Phra Chao Thongtip Buddha and several smaller  images was rebuilt in 1925. South of the viharn there is a small 19^th century scripture repository. Moving west along the south wall of the sanctuary one finds a small sala with four Buddha footprints within each other.

In the south-west corner a small museum (being reconstructed at the time of writing) has a fine silver Buddha image in the Haripunchai-style as well as several good examples of 15  - 16^th century Lanna Buddha images.

Next to the museum on the south side is the Than Chai viharn. The viharn contains a standing Buddha image as well as some remarkable murals that were painted in the 1950’s. The west and north walls depict Buddhist hells and the east and south walls scenes from the coming of the next (Maitreya) Buddha.

In the north-west corner, the small Suwanan Chedi was built  in 1467 as a replica of the original at Wat Chammadevi. Finally, the compound contains a red Shan-looking structure holding a bell and a large gong.

The temple was expanded when Phra Sumana Thera stayed for two years around 1370. His visit is recorded on the oldest stela in the Chiang Mai Valley which still stands under a small shelter near the entrance to the temple. An English explanation of the writing is provided at the site.

Old residents have recorded that the original structure at the site of the present chedi was a mondop with a pinnacled wooden roof (the mondop in the ubosot of Wat Phra Singh is thought to be a loose copy of this vanished structure). The structure had four standing Buddha images twice the height of the present ones. The chedi was rebuilt in a Burmese-style at the beginning of this century.

The museum contains a good display that includes some excellent examples of Haripunchai art.

Local people have left many carved wooden elephants in front of the first of two chedis at Ku Chang. Queen Chamadevi’s legendary elephant is said to be buried here.

The railway passes through rural scenery for almost the whole of its route along the valley. The line climbs right to the national Park at Khun Tan Station before entering Khun Tan tunnel through to the Wang River Valley.

Though only established in 1975, the park was formerly a small hill station. As  a result the relatively easy trail from the station to the summit is well established (8.3  kms, climbing 793 metres) . Trails are clearly marked and historical as well as ecological information is provided at the Park HQ visitor centre (1 km on foot from station).

The vegetation varies according to altitude and the second half  of the trail goes through some lovely mixed  evergreen forest. As with all parks, however, to see anything of the wildlife requires perseverance and overnight stays. For those who would just like a pleasant brisk hike, the trail to the top may be reasonably done in a day, even if arriving on the later train.

In the rainy season, the only small restaurant that serves a variety of food to order is slightly up the slope above the station ticket office. In the park itself, stalls at the camping areas serve food during weekends in the cold and hot seasons when numerous groups of students come to camp in the park.