They had once been at the peak of their wealth. Under the name of the royal family they built temples and shrines with ceremonial grounds to gather townspeople far and wide. The architecture utilized you would find in few other places across the world. The spiritual center was made of 4 main sites. Wat Phra Ram stood out with its chiseled tower of stone that resembled a space craft pointing skyward. Wat Mahahat began where the head of Buddha peered out of a single opening made in the hungry fingerlike roots of a Banyan, as much a part of the ground as it stood apart from it. They built crypts and secret stairways beneath the imposing prangs and within painted using natural pigments likenesses of Buddha. Just beyond the royal palace stand the ceremonial grounds of Wat Phra Si Sanphet that once was packed with citizens jostling for just a glimpse of the royalty or procession held publicly. 3 chedis guarding the relics of an Ayutthaya king each bordered the grounds, pointed spires adding an element of elegance to the construction.

The site while largely intact now echoes with a certain emptiness. Ayutthaya Historical Park, 289 hectares of land containing a time loop of Siam’s rise and the invasions after, awaits being filled with footsteps once more. This UNESCO World Heritage Site is a collage of art following its growth from the traditional Khmer style architecture to what is distinctly Thai. Each broken stone and chipped mural add character to the Thai story, of how their culture came to be.