Wat Phra Si Rattana Mahathat was at one time the main temple of the city of Lop Buri, then known as Lavo, regional capital of the Khmer in Thailand’s central Chao Phraya River basin from the early 11th to the late 13th century. In the 17th century, King Narai of Ayutthaya built a palace, Phra Narai Rachaniwet, on the grounds adjacent to the temple, and in subsequent years the king spent many months of each year there. The first several images in this gallery are views within the palace compound, which contained government offices and ceremonial buildings as well as the king’s private residence. The architecture and art of the temple itself, though within the tradition of Khmer architecture at such sanctuaries as Phimai and Angkor Wat, displays a distinctive provincial style—inevitable, perhaps, given Lop Buri’s great distance from the Khmer capital at Angkor.

Wat Phra Si Rattana Mahathat, Lop Buri

View within the grounds of the Phra Narai Rachaniwet palace
Many of the palace structures are in ruins today.
The ruins of the reception hall, where foreign envoys were received
French architects played a part in the design of the palace compound. The pointed archways, crenellated walls, and massive entry gateways are an indication of their influence, though the pointed arches suggest Persian influence as well.
The palace complex included compounds for both horses and elephants.
The white, Thai-style structure seen through the entry gateway is the Chanthara Phisan Throne Hall.
Entry gateways were built high enough to be able to accommodate a rider atop an elephant.
A view of the central portion of the temple, with the principal prang, or tower, and its entry pavilion seen in the center of the photo.
View within the temple grounds
Another view within the temple
One of several chedi, or stupas, within the temple grounds
Guardian spirits, thewada, in prayerful attitude
More thewada, creatively incorporated into the dome of the tower
The central tower at Phra Si Rattana Mahathat may be seen to mark a step in the transformation of the traditional Khmer tower to a Thai-style prang. Here at Lop Buri, certain elements from both Phimai and Angkor Wat were further exploited and stressed—such as may be seen in the elongated double pediments above the tower's entrances, for example—to create a greater sense of upward flow to the structure.
Most of the temple structures actually date from the reign of Narai (1657–1688). The tower seen in the background at left, though exhibiting later influences, is Khmer derived. The tower in the right foreground derives from Sri Lankan stupa designs.
Detail of the Sri-Lankan style stupa seen in the preceding photo, with fragments of meditating Buddhas circling the tower
A niche on another tower contains a Sukhothai-derived Walking Buddha.
The mandapa, or entry pavilion, attached to the temple's principal tower
Though difficult to decipher in its present condition, the carving on the lintel over this side entry to the mandapa seems to depict Krishna doing battle with the naga Galiya.
Another view of the principal tower
Unlike the temples at, for example, Phimai and Angkor, Phra Si Rattana Mahathat was made of laterite, with a superficial stucco covering that provided a far more easily worked surface for carving than that afforded by the solid sandstone of the earlier temples.

jim wageman | photos i am

Wat Phra Si Rattana Mahathat, Lop Buri