Photos

I was going through some old pictures and found this one. Images of the Buddha are, perhaps, not so interesting, but this place is interesting. It is Wat Roi Ko, part of the ruins of the town of Chiang Saen, on the banks of the Mekong River, near to the Golden Triangle. This town is the birthplace of the Lanna Thai Kingdom and so of modern Thailand. A Tai prince emigrated here from China’s Yunnan Province in the 7th century (the Tai were the ancestors of the Lanna Thai people).The small kingdom was called Yonok. Buddhism came here between the 7th and 12th centuries. King Mengrai, The founder of the Lanna Thai Kingdom was born here in the early twelfth century. This temple probable dates from that time, making it one of the most ancient Buddhist temples in Thailand. War and a great earthquake in the 13 century destroyed most of the town and it gradually sunk into obscurity. However, the ruins remain a monument to the birth of the Thai people and culture.