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Wat Suwandararam (วัดสุวรรณดาราราม)
Thai-Pali.
‘Golden Star Monastery’ or ‘Golden Star Temple’. Name of a first
class royal Buddhist temple located on the city island of
Ayutthaya.
It was built
towards the end
of the Ayutthaya Period by Thong Di (ทองดี), the father of
Thong Duang,
and initially named Wat Thong.
The temple was completely destructed during the fall of Ayutthaya in
1767, yet in 1785, Thong Duang
had
it restored when he
reigned as
King
Rama I,
the first monarch of the
Rattanakosin
Period. The temple
is still active today and is best known for it's exquisite murals in
both the
bot
and
wihaan,
which illustrate significant historical events, including
the Great Duel of
1593
on the
back of
war elephants,
known in Thai
as
chang seuk
and
yutthahadtie,
fought
between
King
Naresuan
the
Great and
Minchit Sra
the Burmese Crown Prince. This legendary mural was painted in the
reign of King
Rama VII
by the court official
Maha
Sawektri
Phraya
Anusaht Chitrakon (มหาเสวกตรี พระยาอนุศาสน์จิตรกร),
who was also known as
Chan Chitrakon (จันทร์ จิตรกร) and who was
the grandfather of
the late Samak Sundaravej
(สมัคร สุนทรเวช), who briefly served as
Prime Minister from
28
January to 9 September 2008.
The scene
of this particular mural
is depicted on a Thai postage stamp issued in 1992 (fig.),
to
commemorate the 400th anniversary of
the Great Duel,
and is similar to a mural (fig.) in the
ubosot
of
Wat Yai Chai Mongkon (fig.)
also in Ayutthaya.
Also spelled Wat Suwannadaraam.
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