Attraction Information
Wat Niwet Thammaprawat Gothic Temple
Wat Niwet Thammaprawat is most intriguing because it's the only Neo-Gothic monastery in Thailand and is located on an island in the Chao Phraya River opposite the Bang Pa In Palace near Ayutthaya.
Access is gained through a cable car strung across the river and manned by the monks from the temple.
In 1878, King Rama V ordered the construction of Wat Niwet Thammaprawat in the same architectural style of a Western cathedral. The building and its decorations are of Neo-Gothic style with beautified stained glass windows.
The base, where the principal image of Buddha and his followers are placed, was designed to resemble the one for the cross in a Christian church and not a traditional Chukkachi base. The Buddha image is called Phra Buddha Naruemol Thammophas and is covered with gold.
On the Ubosot wall in front of the principal Buddha image, there is an image of King Rama V created in the stained glass. The window frames were especially made for curved windows.
Situated to the right of the Ubosot is Ho Phra Khanthararat, a shrine where Phra Khanthararat is in the posture of requesting rain.
Outside the front entrance there is an unusual sundial which has the gnomon at a very acute angle from the horizontal because Ayutthaya is only fourteen degrees North of the Equator.
The base, where the principal image of Buddha and his followers are placed, was designed to resemble the one for the cross in a Christian church and not a traditional Chukkachi base. The Buddha image is called Phra Buddha Naruemol Thammophas and is covered with gold.
On the Ubosot wall in front of the principal Buddha image, there is an image of King Rama V created in the stained glass. The window frames were especially made for curved windows.
Situated to the right of the Ubosot is Ho Phra Khanthararat, a shrine where Phra Khanthararat is in the posture of requesting rain.
Outside the front entrance there is an unusual sundial which has the gnomon at a very acute angle from the horizontal because Ayutthaya is only fourteen degrees North of the Equator.