Historic elephant palace in Ayutthaya to get Bt30 million makeover
The Fine Arts Department will spend Bt30 million on improving the Ayutthaya Elephant Palace & Royal Kraal. Sacred and rare rituals will be carried out at the facility on Monday to mark the start of conservation efforts.
Brahmin priests and elephant masters will perform the rituals.
Located in Ayutthaya’s Muang district, the Ayutthaya Elephant Palace & Royal Kraal is a tourist attraction and was a shooting location for the hugely-popular TV series, BuppeSanNivas, which ended last month.
Arunsak Kingmanee, who heads the Fine Arts Office for Ayutthaya, said this site was where elephant-catching shows were staged in the old days.
“Elephants were hugely important animals in the past. They were vessels for royals and aristocrats,” he said. “They were also military tanks in battle.”
Ayutthaya Elephant Palace & Royal Kraal’s manager Ittipan Khaolamai said today’s rituals must be held in line with ancient science to ask permission from sacred beings to start the renovation or development efforts.
Following the renovation, relevant authorities will increase promotion of the Ayutthaya Elephant Palace & Royal Kraal among tourists.
