Ayutthaya Wat Chang Buddhist Temple, Thailand

Address

Ayutthaya Wat Chang Buddhist Temple, Thailand

Phu Khao Thong, Phra Nakhon Si Ayutthaya District,

Ayutthaya 13000, Thailand

Moolavar

Buddha

Introduction

The semi-ruined temple is mainly famous for its biggest chedi, surrounded by a ring of elephant statues. That is why Wat Chang translates to “A Temple Surrounded by Elephants”. It is said that a king had once discovered Buddha relics buried in the ground here, so he dug them up, paid homage to them, and buried them back right in. He then ordered the construction of a chedi over it which is the Wat Chang you see today.

Temple, Wat Chang is in the Hantra sub-district of Ayutthaya city which is settled before the founding of the original part of the town. Wat Chang means that a ring of elephant statues surrounds the temple’s biggest Chedi, the monastery of elephants. A king once found Buddha relics here by digging them up and ordered the construction of Chedi over them, which is now called Wat Chang. The structure is half-ruined, but it is still famous for its history and the role it plays in the city of Ayutthaya. It is one of the famous landmarks and is given importance just like any other ancient structure in Ayutthaya though it is ruined and is away from the actual city. The temple’s name means the ‘Monastery of the Elephant’ due to the elephant statues which presumably once surrounded the chedi in the manner of the one at Wat Maheyong. This area of the city, known as the Hantra sub-district, was probably settled prior to the founding of Ayutthaya city in the 14th century. The earliest incarnations of the temple may date from that era, but it is likely that the present buildings are a later reconstruction, perhaps from the late Ayutthaya period.