The golden Buddha statue of 5.5 tons hides a hundred years under plaster casing

The golden Buddha statue weighs 5.5 tons and lies amidst the ruins of the ancient temple for many years with the outer plaster covering, only to be discovered after an unexpected accident.

Golden Buddha (Golden Buddha) has an official name in Thai as "Phra Phuttha Maha Suwana Patimakon". This is a gold statue weighing 5.5 tons, located in Wat Traimit temple , Bangkok, Thailand. Scholars are still uncertain about the origin of the statue, according to Vitange News. The egg-shaped head, showing the statue could be born in the Sukhothai Dynasty in the 13th-14th centuries.

Since the Sukhothai art was heavily influenced by India and the metal Buddha image produced in this country was taken to many other countries to assemble, it is likely that craftmen cast each part of India's Golden Buddha statue. . Later, the statue could be moved from Sukhothai city to Ayutthaya, located at 1403. Some scholars believe that Ram Khamhaeng stele refers to the statue. On the 23-27 line of the first stone stele, there is a reference to "golden Buddha image" located in "Sukhothai city center".

Picture 1 of The golden Buddha statue of 5.5 tons hides a hundred years under plaster casing
The golden Buddha statue once hid under a plaster shell for hundreds of years.(Photo: YouTube).

In the past, the statue was plastered with plaster to prevent theft. Thick plaster layer covered with statues and encrusted with colored glass. According to researchers, plaster plastering took place before the Ayutthaya kingdom was destroyed by Burmese forces in 1767. The statue lies in the middle of Ayutthaya's ruins and falls into oblivion.

In 1801, after establishing Bangkok as the capital and directing the construction of many temples here, Thai King Buddha Yodfa Chulaloke (Rama I), ordered to bring to Bangkok many old Buddha statues from temples destroyed all over. country. At the time of King Rama III's reign (1824-1851), the still-plaster statue was placed as the main Buddha image in the central building of Wat Chotanaram temple.

In 1954, a new building was built in the temple area to store the statue. The statue moved to a new location on May 25, 1955. When the transport team tried to lift the statue from the altar, the ropes broke and the statue fell to the ground. At that moment, some parts of the plaster shell cracked, revealing the gold layer below.

The relocation was halted so that the experts assessed the statue. They carefully removed all of the plaster covering the statue and discovered the body of 9 perfectly assembled pieces together. They also found a plaster-covered key at the base, which could be used to disassemble the bodies, allowing for easier transport.