Thailand: Nineteenth-century detail from a mural in Wat Phra Singh temple in Chiang Mai, northern Thailand.

Wat Phra Singh is a Theravada Buddhist temple within the walled moat of the old city of Chiang Mai in Northern Thailand.

King Ananda Mahidol (Rama VIII), the older brother of the present King Bhumibol Adulyadej (Rama IX), bestowed it the status of Royal temple of the first grade in 1935.

Built in 1345 CE, Wat Phra Singh is notable for the Phra Buddha Sihing statue after which the temple was named. It is thought the Buddha statue came to King Mangrai's “new city” (chiang mai, in Thai) from Sri Lanka via the former Siamese capital of Ayutthaya.

This royal Buddhist temple contains several intricate murals that help define the city’s history and close relations with Burma. In this mural, a man’s legs are tattooed and the women’s hair and dresses indicate an attachment to Burmese styles of the day.

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Supplier: CPA Media Co. Ltd.

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Pictures From History

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LAN NA KINGDOM