The recent trip to the four Thon Buri communities began at Ban Matoom in Soi Arun Amarin 23, opposite the Naval Dockyard.

Thon Buri gained more importance, and eventually after the fall of Ayutthaya in 1767 became a new capital during the reign of King Taksin the Great (1767-1782) due to its strategic location and many existing fortresses and temples.įrom the late Thon Buri to Rattanakosin period, the Thon Buri area boasted residences of royals and bureaucrats, markets, greenery, rice fields and fruit orchards. Later in 1557, the king made the community a city named Muang Thon Buri Sri Maha Samut tasked with collecting tariffs and also to guard Ayutthaya against invaders who came from the south. It grew rapidly after the Bang Kruai canal was built to connect Bangkok and Bang Kruai during the reign of King Maha Chakkraphat, also of Ayutthaya, in 1538. In 1433 during the reign of King Chao Sam Phraya of Ayutthaya, this area became a tariff collection point. It uses the original methods to produce modern-style items such as plates, salad bowls, fruit bowls and trays, instead of sticking to only traditional-style bowls. Today, the Jiam Sangsajja bronze factory is Thailand’s sole maker of khan long hin.

However, the difficulties of making the bronzeware and training new craftsmen have caused younger generations to switch to other occupations. In the past, every family here madekhan long hin for a living. The art requires expertise and many procedures mixing copper and tin to the ratio of 7:2, beating it into metal plates with hammers, forming the plate into desired shapes, smoothing the uneven edges and polishing the surface. A group of craftsmen who fled the war in Ayutthaya in 1767 settled there and continued their ancient art of making khan long hin, stone-polished bronzeware. Sitting on a major transportation route, it was a transit point for goods as it was close to the estuary that connects the river to the sea.ĭating to the Ayutthaya period, Ban Bu is an ancient community by the Bangkok Noi Canal. The name is believed to have evolved from 'Bang Koh', meaning an island, or from the numerous makok nam, or hog plum, growing there. During the Ayutthaya period, the Thon Buri we know today was a small riverside community that went by the name of Bangkok. This cultural walking programme was introduced by the Tourism Society Network on its recent tour entitled 'Visiting Houses of Intellect and the Cultural Heritage of Bangkok Noi Residents'.īangkok Noi sits on the western bank of the Chao Phraya. The four communities, on Thon Buri side of the Chao Phraya River, and nearby cultural attractions, such as Wat Suwannaram with one of Thailand's finest mural paintings, can easily be explored in a day on foot. Three communities in Bangkok Noi district _ Ban Matoom, Ban Khao Mao and Ban Bu _ are on the verge of losing the skills they are famous for _ Ban Matoom for making sweetened bael fruit, Ban Khao Mao for making khao mao (pounded rice grains used to make a variety of snacks) and Ban Bu for making khan long hin, or stone-polished bronze-ware, an art traceable to the Ayutthaya period.Īnd their neighbouring district, Ban Chang Lo, unfortunately is no longer a centre for moulding Buddha statues.

Bangkok noi vs yai