From afar, the iconic stupas of the Temple of Dawn stand elegantly on the bank of the Chao Phraya River. But looking closely at the finer details of the famous landmark, admirers may notice a thick coat of lime plaster that almost covers decorative ceramic tiles. At some spots, ceramics are attached untidily to the central stupa, suggesting sloppy repair work.
Samples of repair work. Photos: Karnjana Karnjanatawe
The restoration of Wat Arun, as the Temple of Dawn is known, has stirred a heated debate among conservationists, archaeologists, historians and admirers of the historical edifice. The Fine Arts Department, which oversees the restoration, insists that the work has been carried out according to scholastic standards and historical accuracy. However, critics find the work sub-par and poorly supervised, resulting in the diminished grandeur of a national heritage site.
"The stupas of the Temple of Dawn are one of the world's masterpieces. When I saw the restoration, I was dismayed. Its beauty has been badly damaged," said Prof Sayan Praicharnjit, former dean of the Faculty of Archaeology of Silpakorn University and former head of the Underwater Archaeology Division of the Fine Arts Department.
Comparing pictures taken before the repairs to some parts of the finished restoration, observers complained that some of the new tiles are of a different type from the previous tiles, and some old tiles are even missing. The white plaster, too, has been a source of much contention: has the surface been scrubbed too white, thus obscuring the majesty of the original?
So far more than 10,000 people have signed the online petition via Change.org conducted by a group of artisans, archaeologists and academics who are concerned about the restoration of the Temple of Dawn.
The deadline for the restoration work is Oct 10, upon which the Fine Arts Department will assess the quality of the repairs for the final time. In December, a grand celebration is planned at the temple as part of the 250th anniversary of Thon Buri. There will be traditional performances, a ritual to pay respect to King Taksin -- who founded Thon Buri as a capital -- a photo exhibit from the past to the present of the Temple of Dawn, and a New Year celebration.
The group led by Prof Sayan submitted the petition to Prime Minister General Prayut Chan-o-cha on Sept 12, asking him to suspend renovation work of the stupas. The petition also requested details of the outsourcing contract and asked the department to set up a committee to inspect the work.
In Prof Sayan's view, a cause of the poor restoration is the process of outsourcing. The Fine Arts Department outsourced the restoration work. Like other private companies, the business focuses are on making profits and cutting costs and in this case it includes lower quality of materials and a lack of skilful craftsmen, he said.
In addition, the department didn't conduct its own on-site research for a detailed assessment of current conditions and previous repair works before outsourcing the restoration work.
A Preeyakij Co artisan demonstrates the making of multicoloured tiles used in the latest restoration. Photo: Patipat Janthong
"The research is a must and required by international standards for restoration of historical sites. The research must be conducted by skilful craftsmen who can accurately record every detail of the artistic work, especially for the stupas of the Temple of Dawn, because every square foot of the stupas has its own unique detail," he said.
The Fine Arts Department should have supervised the outsourced project closely in order to prevent any mistakes during the repair process, which has resulted in the loss of historical value and the character of the Temple of Dawn, he added.
The Temple of Dawn, which is known as Wat Arun Ratchawararam Ratchawaramahaviharn, was built during the Ayutthaya period. It used to be the royal temple of King Taksin during the Thon Buri Kingdom (1768-1782). It once housed the most sacred Emerald Buddha image. During the start of the Rattanakosin era, King Rama I moved the capital to the east of the Chao Phraya River in 1782 and built the royal temple in the compound of the Grand Palace. The temple houses the Emerald Buddha image and is known as Wat Phra Kheaw, or Temple of the Emerald Buddha.
Historical records show that the main stupa of the Temple of Dawn was 16m tall before it underwent extensive renovation to reach the present height at 81.85m during the reign of King Rama III. The central stupa is surrounded by smaller-size stupas at four corners. There are also four mondop (a shrine-like structure with a spired roof) at the east, west, south and north.
The before and after pictures of the latest repair show the different tiles used for renovation. Photo: campaign on Chang.org
During the past 50 years, the stupas have undergone three major repairs, including the latest effort starting in 2013. The five-year restoration, which is scheduled to end next week, cost 130 million baht.
"At that time it was a crisis when a head of one horse and a face of the angel rider statue broke off [during heavy rain in August 2012]," said the Fine Arts Department's Archaeology Office director Nareerat Peechapechakop. The damage triggered the department to survey all nine structures of the stupas.
"We found that all structures were still in a good condition, but not the façade and tiles," she said. The Culture Ministry which oversees the Fine Arts Department wanted the stupas to be fixed. The restoration project was launched five years ago and construction firm Preeyakij won the bidding. According to the director, the company restored historical sites for the Fine Arts Department in the North before winning the project.
As required by the Fine Arts Department, the company had to take pictures of the stupas, which included aerial shots and 3D scans. The team needed to draw pictures of the stupas, copy the patterns of decorated tiles and record every pattern, colour, position and material of the tiles and all mythological figures from the base of each stupa to the top.
After the examination process, it reported to the Archaeology Office that it found deterioration of old surfaces and that about 40%, or 120,000 pieces of the total 300,000 tiles, needed to be repaired.
"The company has worked under our supervision. We instructed them not to remove any original tiles decorating the stupas since the reign of King Rama III, although some are broken, because we want to preserve the original materials. What we allowed them to remove are damaged tiles from previous repairs," she said.
The outsourcing company replaced broken tiles with new ones and also cleaned the moss-tainted stupas, restored the surface, resulting in the white façade of the stupas, which also led to the restoration scandal.
The director already saw the repairs. She wondered why the public has recently been in uproar over the restoration.
"We have followed every step of the restoration procedure. We don't have any reason to change anything and get blamed. When the surface was cleaned and repaired, it revealed its original white. When some people complained about the beauty, it's not fair to criticise the whole restoration work. They should specify which parts are imperfect," she said.
Although she admitted that today's craftsmanship skills might be inferior to those of craftsmen in the past, any errors can still be fixed because the restoration work has not yet finished, she said.
After the deadline of Oct 10, the Fine Arts Department director-general Anandha Chuchoti may consider appointing a committee to inspect the restoration work, she said. "In theory, and due to the weather and pollution in Bangkok, this present restoration should last no longer than 20 years," she said. The estimation is based on a general cycle of restoration.
Asst Prof Chawalit Khaokhiew, dean of Faculty of Archaeology of Silpakorn University, agreed with those who are concerned about the restoration.
"Nothing is beyond repair. It is good that many parties got involved and shared the information to improve the restoration of such an important national heritage site," he said.
The Fine Arts Department should take this opportunity to revise their standards and the whole process of the restoration of national heritage sites, including the outsourcing process and the time frames for restoration works, he added.
"Since the problem of restoration work can be found even in a big national project like the Temple of Dawn, who knows when a similar thing might occur to other heritage sites that are located throughout the nation," he noted.
