Wat Thao Khot

About halfway between the National Museum and Wat Phra Mahathat along Ratchadamnoen Road is Wat Thao Khot temple. The temple actually incorporates the remains of five previously abandoned temples.

Hard against the street is an old ordination hall, only partially roofed and now partially burned as well. The hall appears to have had some murals painted on the wooden part, but they're now almost unreadable.

Behind this old hall is a larger ubosot (ordination hall) that is still in good shape. This hall has finely detailed roofs and gable details. The sema stones (boundary markers) around the hall are each housed in their own large pavilions.

Between the two halls are the remains of a large pagoda, now not much more than a pile a bricks.

Further back into the sandy compound is a rather new looking bell tower. The temple compound is full of large mature trees, making it very shady.

Just a bit further back in the compound are some old and rather beautifully detailed monks' quarters (kuti) with a masonry first story and wooden upper floor.

If you explore further back, you'll see that the temple compound is quite large, and some of the trees are huge, making an area that is quite cool and shady even in mid-day. The area at the back of the temple compound is home to an entire community, not just monks.