Just in time for the nostalgia craze that's hit Thailand in the past few months, the Fine Arts Department under the Ministry of Culture has brought back their highly successful exhibition, "Paen Din Thai Nai Adeed" ("Thailand's Past"), to be held indefinitely at the Siwamok Phiman Hall, on the grounds of the Bangkok National Museum.
Returning on display after the Japan Foundation's "The History Of Japanese Art: Life And Faith" ended last month, there have been vast improvements and international safety measures devised within the hall.
The exhibition will house a vast collection of antiquities, including terracotta sculptures, murals, bronze artefacts, and religious items spanning from prehistoric Siam to modern Thailand. And apart from the iconic must-see First Stone Inscription or King Ramkhamhaeng Inscription documenting the first ever Thai alphabet in the year 1292, there will be new and never-before-seen artefacts showcased.
With the hope of locals and foreigners learning more about the history of Thailand, some of the newly shown antiquities include a monastic fan woven from elephant ivory that King Rama II (who reigned from 1809-1824) presented to the Supreme Patriarch of Thailand (the head of the order of Buddhist monks in Thailand); a 1,200-1,400-year-old terracotta Buddha head dubbed by renowned historian Mom Chao Subhadradis Diskul as one of the most beautiful pieces of art; a Chinese-inspired lotus-petal jar used to store holy water from the era of King Rama II; and a striking Western-style sculpture of King Narai by Italian Alfonso Tonarelli from 1915.
