Thailand Guide
The north
Chiang Mai National Museum
Opening time: Wed– Sun 9am–4pm
Price: B100
Address: On the northwestern outskirts of Chiang Mai
Website: www.thailandmuseum.com
The engrossing Chiang Mai National Museum tells the history of northern Thai (Lanna) art and culture and is well labelled in English. Highlights include some lovely ceramics from San Kamphaeng and a strong section on Thai religious art. Hundreds of Buddha images are on display, ranging from a humble, warmly smiling sandstone head of the Haripunjaya (Lamphun) era, representing the earliest northern style, to gleaming images in the Ratanakosin (Bangkok) style. In the golden age of Lanna, many images were produced to resemble those from northern India, after the Shakyamuni (Lion of the Shakyas) archetype at the great Buddhist temple at Bodh Gaya, the site of the Buddha's enlightenment. These broad-shouldered, plump-bellied Buddhas are always seated with the right hand in the touching-the-earth gesture, while the face is well rounded with pursed lips and a serious, majestic demeanour.