Lamphun - Wat Haripunchai 1
Lamphun - Wat Haripunchai 1
2005
Autostitched image
seadragon / zoom.it view at : zoom.it/v92G
Taken on: 1st November, 2005. Copyright: Attribution-NonCommercial License - See Geoff_B's page of Flickr
Read more about Lamphun
The town of Lamphun was established around the ninth century by a group of former Buddhist monks who had travelled from Lopburi and founded the state of Haripunchai. Their first ruler, Chamma Thewi, was the daugher of Lopburi's ruler and she established a dynasty lasting a few hundred years.
During this period, Lopburi was seen as the centre of learning for the region, and young novices travelled south to Lopburi for instruction. The state of Haripunchai fell in 1281 as a result of sly manoevring by King Mangrai who incorporated it into his northern Lanna kingdom.
Situated around 26 km to the southeast of Chiang Mai, Lamphun's quiet and charming provincial feel is enhanced by lotus-filled moats and old religious buildings, although considering its age and history, monuments to attest to the past are fairly few and far between.
Most of the sights, such as the more contemporary Wat Phra That Hariphunchai and its associated National Museum, are easily visited on foot ... Read our complete Lamphun travel guide
