Research & Article

Phra Borommadhat Chaiya in Surat Thani is renowned for being the only Srivijayan architecture in Thailand that is left in perfect condition and is considered the most elegant. Although there is no evidence of when it was actually first constructed or how many times it had undergone renovations, its important architectural feature, which is the stupas adorning each tier of the structure, and found to be similar to that of “Candi” (Srivijayan architecture during Sailan Dynasty in Central Java, Indonesia), has led to the conclusion that it was built in Srivijayan style during the 8th-9th century. This was the same period in which Wat Wieng, Wat Long and Wat Kaeo were built in Chaiya, Surat Thani, and Candi Kalasan in Central Java of Indonesia. This article therefore speculates that Phra Borommadhat Chaiya could have been first built around 6th-7th century in Champa style and later renovated in the 8th-9th centuries under the influence of Srivijayan culture, when the small stupas were added to each tier level up to the topmost part of the structure, in the same period as the construction of Wat Wieng, Wat Long and Wat Kaeo in Chaiya.

In addition to that, from studying the architecture of Phra Borommadhat Chaiya through historical and scientific methods along with other evidences such as inscriptions, Chinese archival documents and art objects, based on principles of cultural economics, a new supposition about the history of Srivijaya in Chaiya has been raised suggesting that before Chaiya became part of Srivijayan civilization in the 8th century, the region was likely to have been under the influence of Champa culture. This is revealed through evidence of the existence of Phra Borommadhat Chaiya before it underwent renovation during the Srivijaya period.