Thai Lü style Wat Ton Laeng

Wat Ton Laeng

19^th Century temple in Thai Lü style

Name

Wat Ton Laeng

Date

Early 19^th century

Location

About 70 kilometers North of Nan town
Nan

Located in a rural area about 70 kilometers North of the provincial capital Nan is the Wat Ton Laeng. The temple, also known as the Wat Ban Ton Laeng is an early 19^th century temple in the Thai Lü style. It is a quiet place, seldom visited by foreign tourists.

Guarded by lions

The main building of this small temple serves both as a viharn and ubosot; its entrance is guarded by two colorful lion statues. The structure has small windows and very little exterior decoration. Its most distinctive feature is the very unusual, three tiered, overlapping, hipped roof laid with wooden tiles.

Hipped roof and a very small gable

Whereas at the Lanna or Rattanakosin style temples the roof descends on only two sides which leaves room for a large usually heavily decorated gable, at the Wat Ton Laeng the lower two tiers of the roof are hipped; the roof descends on all four sides towards the walls, leaving no room for a gable. Only on the top tier the roof descends to the walls on just two sides, leaving space for a small gable, that is decorated with a colorful sun ray motive. The edges of the lower two tiers of the roof are decorated with triple Naga finials.

Large golden Buddha
Inside the viharn banners woven from cotton hang down from the ceiling. Seated on a pedestal is a large golden Buddha image. The image in the Bhumisparsha mudra (“Calling the Earth to witness”) is surrounded by a number of smaller images.

Location

The Wat Ton Laeng is located in a quiet, rural area about 70 kilometers North of Nan town. It is found on a peninsula formed by the Pua and Khwang rivers, a little of Route 1080.

How to get to the Wat Ton Laeng

To get there from Nan town, charter a songthaew or book a private taxi through hotel or travel agent.

Opening hours

The temple grounds are open daily during daylight hours, from about 6 am until 6 pm.
Since the temple is rarely visited by tourists, the viharn will sometimes be locked.

Entrance fee

Admission is free.

Attractions in Nan