Lanna Buddha Statues
Author : Peter Vredeveld
The Biggest Buddha in Chiang Mai
The kingdom of Lanna was an ancient kingdom that was believed to be a rival kingdom of Ayutthaya. The kingdom of Lanna is presently situated in northern Thailand during the 13th to 18th centuries. One of the most used languages during the kingdom of Lanna is the Lanna language. They had their language and their own culture. The people of Lanna Kingdom support and follow Buddhism as well as animism.
The Lanna Kingdom had a deep route in Buddhist images engraved in Northern Thailand's cultural history. The Lanna style of Buddha culture emerged in Northern Thailand with the Sukhothai Kingdom to the south. One of Thailand's most visited Buddhist pilgrimage sites is Chiang Mai, which is stated in history that Chiang Mai used to be the capital of the kingdom of Lanna. No wonder the Lanna Kingdom had a magnificent Buddhist culture. The kingdom of Lanna had close relations with Lanxiang (also known as Laos). Large schools are found to be constructed which specialize in Buddha images and Buddha cultures.
Buddha Statues in the Kingdom of Lanna
As we know, there is a profound influence of Buddha culture in the present that was built during this era. The statues made during this era are mainly Bronze, except for the Payao and Haripunchai Schools. The ancient statues are constructed with quite a thick influence of this ancient kingdom. But in the 16th century, the course of creating these vast statues was somewhat reversed. The statues built in the 16th century show some outstanding statues made of thin alloy; some were even cast with precious materials such as gold and NaK (gold and copper alloy). There is quite a different soil used for casting these Buddha statues since it has a rice peel mixed with it, giving it a black color.
Chiang Mai
During the rule of the Lanna Kingdom, many schools were built, and most of the Buddha images were quite similar in many schools, except for Chiang Mai School. There were several schools, which are as follows:
- Haripunchai School
- Phrae and Lampang School
- Fang and Chaiprakan School
- Nan School
- Payao School
- Chiang Mai
And most of all, Chiang Mai School is one of the most famous schools of the era.
Chiang Mai used to be the capital of Lanna Kingdom. Chiang Mai is the largest and most culturally significant and influential city in the Northern Kingdom. Chiang Mai has more than 300 Buddhist temples. Chiang Mai has been enlisted as one of the top 2 tourist destinations in 2014's "25 Best Destinations in the World".
Some of the most significant Buddhist images in Chiang Mai are Wat Phantao, Wat Phrathat Doi, Wat Chiangman, and Wat Chedi Luang.
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