AYUTTHAYA: Owners, mahouts and Brahmin priests led 10 elephants to worship deities in a ceremony marking the start of a 30-million-baht restoration of the centuries-old Royal Elephant Kraal on Monday.
They are traditionally required to first seek permission from the sacred place, built during the time of the kingdom of Ayutthaya, and perform a ritual to predict the outcome.
Thongrian Miphan, president of the elephant foundation, led 10 elephants to the ceremony at the kraal in Phra Nakhon Sri Ayutthaya district. Brahmin priests and nine revered mahouts also took part.
The mahouts made offerings and used a boiled chicken bone for the divination, and agreed the restoration would proceed smoothly.
The kraal, listed by the Fine Arts Department as a national archaeological site, is showing the wear of time and countless visitors. Authorities said its nearly 800 large talung, or pillars, where elephants are tethered, will be a focus of the repairs.
In the past, mahouts used the kraal to show the king how they rounded up and caught elephants.