FRIDAY, March 29, 2024
nationthailand

Remembering our Monarch

Remembering our Monarch

Two museums shine a spotlight on the life and work of His Majesty the King

OVER THE past five weeks, as Thais continue to mourn the passing of their beloved Monarch, His Majesty the King Bhumibol Adulyadej, several exhibitions have been organised to pay tribute to the genius of the King and his work during his 70 years on throne.
The Royal Thai Armed Forces has chosen to remember His Majesty by promoting its learning centre and military museum and inviting families and students in Bangkok’s northern suburbs to trace the footsteps of their beloved King. 
Located on Vibhavadi Rangsit Road, the white-painted building of the Royal Development Projects and Security Coordination Centre has transformed its ground floor into a gallery for an interesting exhibition on the King, his royal development projects and his sufficiency economy philosophy.
The centre was set up in 2008 to provide an effective operations base for the royal development projects, which aimed to improve quality of life, give agricultural knowledge and rehabilitate the forests in remote villages along the kingdom’s borders.
A tour of the exhibition starts with an eight-minute light and sound show set in a mock forest. It demonstrates how the King turned a barren mountain into fruitful farmland through four royal initiatives. These are the Royal Rainmaking Project, which uses a “super-sandwich” technique to produce artificial rain; the Check Dams, which reduce water flow velocity; the Monkey Cheek project, which helps solve problems with flooding; and the Vetiver Grass project, which prevents soil degradation and erosion. 
The Eight Decade hall hosts an exhibition of photographs that range from the years His Majesty the King and his family lived in Lausanne, Switzerland through the start of his reign in 1946 to his coronation on May 5, 1950.
Young visitors have the chance to observe the King’s journey to unmapped villages and admire the computer-generated New Year cards he made for his people every year since 1989.

Remembering our Monarch

The Hall of Eight Decade exhibition showcases hundreds of photographs of His Majesty the King Bhumibol. 


Room 902 is home to an exhibition on the Royal Food Bank Project and honours Her Majesty the Queen Sirikit. The project was set up in Mae Hong Son province in 2000 to educate villagers about agriculture, animal husbandry and fisheries so that they could expand their food sources. Also on display is a unique collection of fine handcrafts and artworks, created by artisans of the Support Foundation. 
Outside there’s an exhibition on the Forest Loves Water Project. As part of her reforestation efforts, Queen Sirikit advised people to grow three kinds of local trees that can absorb water, maintain ecology and serve as herbal medicine, thus bringing value to the economy.

Remembering our Monarch

His Majesty the King invented the Chaipattana Aerator to improve water quality.


The headquarters is also home to Baan Phor Pieng, a two-rai spread designed as an agricultural learning centre based on the sufficiency economy philosophy, which offers plenty of tips on how to live sufficiently and not become a slave to materialism. 
The wooden Thai-style house is surrounded by a large herb and vegetable garden, a fish pond, a mushroom nursery, a duck coop and several hen houses. Only non-chemical fertiliser made with organic matter is used here and the animals share the food sources with people. Water from the pond is used to irrigate the vegetables and bananas.
A five-minute drive away from the headquarters is the National Memorial. Commemorating those who sacrificed their lives defending the country, the memorial, which occupies 37 rai, took 11 years to build. Opened in 1994, it features three contemporary Thai buildings and a ceremonial ground, which is used for such religious and national ceremonies as the Royal Thai Armed Forces Day and Veterans Day. 
The four-storey Military History and Museum Building offers an interactive exhibition on Thailand’s wars from the Sukhothai to the Rattanakosin eras. 
The first floor is designed to resemble the battlefields on which the Thai military fought –the French Indochina Campaign in 1941, the Great East Asia War, when the Japanese military forces landed at Prachuap Khiri Khan in 1941, and the Korean War in 1952. 

Remembering our Monarch

The History and Military Museum mimics a battlefield of the Korean War in 1952.


The second floor is handed over to a rare collection of the King Bhumibol’s old military uniforms and raincoats from his wardrobe as well as a model of a 50-baht gold Forces mace. A seven-minute multimedia presentation narrates his Majesty the King’s biography and royal activities in military affairs
The third floor has a display of heroic figures, among them Queen Somdet Phra Suriyothai, who gave up her life to save her husband King Maha Chakkraphat in the Burmese-Siamese War in 1548, King Naresuan the Great, who declared the independence of Siam in 1584 and Thao Suranari, who fought to protect Nakhon Ratchasima from Chao Anuwong’s troops in 1826. 
The fourth floor is devoted to the development of military uniforms from the pre-Sukhothai era to the present. They are modelled by lifelike wax figures created by veteran sculptors of the famous Thai Human Imagery Museum.
One of the highlights is a 4 x 90-metre mural painting in the Exclusive Building for Panoramic Display. Costing Bt10-million, this astonishing painting is the work of national artist Preecha Taothong and Silpakorn University students and is divided into 10 scenes capturing the historical development of Siam kingdom from the Sukhothai era until today.

Remembering our Monarch

The panoramic mural painting wall captures the landscape of Wat Phra Khaew and the Thonburi Kingdom.

“We used an ancient technique to make the cement for the background and acrylic colours for the art work to ensure the painting would last. We started by taking a photo of actual site then sketching it on paper. We also researched books and architecture to capture every detail of each period,” says Colonel Ekasak Oonchuen, a member of artistic team. 
The painting shows the Ayutthaya Kingdom being set on fire, King Taksin the Great building up his Thonburi Kingdom in 1767, King Chulalongkorn’s journey during the World War II while King Prajadhipok signing the Constitution of the Siam Kingdom in 1932. 
  

MEMORIES OF THE PAST
>> Royal Development Projects and Security Coordination Centre is at 9/1, Vibhavadi Rangsit Road, Lam Luk Ka district, Pathum Thani. It’s open Monday to Friday from 8.30am to 4.30pm. Admission is free. Find out more at www.RDPSCC.com. 
>> National Memorial is on Vibhavadi Rangsit Road, opposite Thupatemi Stadium. It’s open daily, except public holidays, from 9am to 3pm. Admission is free. Call (02) 533 8467 or visit www.ThaiNationalMemorial.org.
 

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