Ancient Temple

Ancient Temple

Introduction   Ancient Temple is located next to the Winter Festival Square in the northern part of the city. The temple houses various gourd-shaped stupas of different sizes, embedded with ceramic tiles, giving it a rather peculiar appearance. Legend has it that when the Burmese army attacked Chiang Mai, they repeatedly failed to conquer it. The Burmese and the King of Chiang Mai agreed to a stupa-building competition — whoever completed their stupa first would be declared the winner. The Chiang Mai army cleverly devised a plan, constructing mock stupas out of bamboo, wood, and cloth, then painting them in vivid colors to make them look realistic. They built these decoys much faster than the Burmese, who were deceived by the illusion and, honoring their promise, withdrew their troops. Later, the people of Chiang Mai jointly built a real stupa, which has five levels, each shaped like a watermelon. Its name, translated phonetically, is Ancient Temple.

Chiang Mai, Thailand