Phra Phuttha Trai Rattana Nayok

Chao Phraya Nikorn Bodin (Toh Kalayanamit) established Wat Kalayanamit by donating his own house and some surrounding land, which was a village where Chinese monks lived and was later called “Kudi Chin Village”, to build the temple in 2368 BE and proposed it to be the royal temple. King Nangklao named it “Wat Kalayanamit” and then gave orders to build Phra Vihara Luang and the principal Buddha image.

Made of bricks and stucco with gilding decoration.

Phra Phuttha Trai Rattana Nayok has specific styles of the Buddha image made in King Rama III period which the body is quite slim; the face is likely round-oval; the hair coils are small; the head has the flame halo; the eyebrows are arched; the area between the eyelids line and the eyebrows is the sheets of eyelids, similar to the Buddha image in the late Ayutthaya; the eyes are open and starring straight; the nose is quite small and prominent; the mouth is small and the lip line is a little bit curved nearly straight like Ruea Pratun (a boat with a roof cover); The face is like a figure; the image is seated in the attitude of subduing mara; the fingertips are slender and even in length; and the outer robe is big and placed upon the middle of the body.

Chao Phraya Nikorn Bodin (Toh Kalayanamit) was the founder of Wat Kalayanamit. King Nangklao also helped in building Vihara and the principal Buddha image in the temple. Later in King Rama IV period, the Buddha image was given a name as Phra Phuttha Trai Rattana Nayok.

The royal initiative to build the large Buddha image in the capital city was to present the prosperity of Buddhism under the king’s patronage. It could be seen that the large Buddha images such as Phra Phuttha Trai Rattana Nayok in Wat Kalayanamit and Phra Buddhasaiyas in Wat Phra Chetuphon Vimolmangklararm were bulit in the capital city during King Rama III period.

ศักดิ์ชัย สายสิงห์.งานช่าง สมัยพระนั่งเกล้าฯ.กรุงเทพฯ : มติชน, 2551.

ศักดิ์ชัย สายสิงห์.พระพุทธรูปในประเทศไทย : รูปแบบ พัฒนาการและความเชื่อของคนไทย. กรุงเทพฯ : ภาควิชาประวัติศาสตร์ศิลปะ คณะโบราณคดี มหาวิทยาลัยศิลปากร, 2556.