Phra Pathom Chedi

About this place

The tallest stupa in the world, rising about a hundred and twenty metres in the centre of Nakhon Pathom west of Bangkok, its dome glowing golden-orange with glazed Chinese tiles. Its name means the first stupa, as tradition places Thailand's first stupa here, when Buddhist missionaries arrived from India more than two thousand years ago, making Nakhon Pathom one of the country's oldest towns. King Mongkut, while still a monk, began the present structure over a ruined ancient stupa in the mid-nineteenth century, and King Chulalongkorn completed it. A wide circular cloister with four halls at the cardinal points surrounds it; the best known, the north hall, has a large standing Buddha beneath which rest the ashes of King Vajiravudh. The garden around holds a copy of the original stupa, statues and sacred trees, and a small museum of Dvaravati-era finds. A small fee of about sixty baht is charged to foreigners in known listings, and the grounds open from morning until six in the evening. Modest dress is expected: shoulders and knees covered, and shoes off inside the halls. In November a big fair with a night market and lights is held around it. It is about an hour by car or train from Bangkok, and tours often pair it with the Damnoen Saduak floating market on the same road.