Luang Prabang Wat Aham
Located at the foot of Mount Phousi and adjacent to Wat Visoun, Wat Aham is built on the site of shrines to the local spirits, Pu Nyer and Nya Nyer.
Vat Aham, Luang Prabang, Laos
Wat Aham in Luang Prabang, Laos. There were some students from a school next door playing during recess time.
Wat Aham in Luang Prabang, Laos 2
Wat Aham in Luang Prabang, Laos 2
Friday 6 April 2007 - 3:04pm
Wat Aham and Wat Wisun, Luang Prabang, Laos
Taking a tour of Wat Aham and Wat Wisun temples in Luang Prabang, Laos.
Wat Aham in Luang Prabang, Laos 3
Wat Aham in Luang Prabang, Laos 3
Sunday 8 April 2007 - 3:39pm
Wat Aham in Luang Prabang, Laos 1
Wat Aham in Luang Prabang, Laos 1
Friday 6 April 2007 - 3:03pm
Luang Prabang, Laos, roads leading to Wat Visoun & Wat Aham during Songkran. April 14, 2017
Water thrown to each other as wishing luck for the new year. Monk lead small contingent parade toward Nam Khan River to collect water for washing of buddha ceremony.
Luang Prabang Wat Mai
Wat Mai is the closest wat to the what was the royal palace and is now the museum where the Prabang is kept. The Prabang was kept in Wat Mai and once a year returns to a pavilion in the forecourt to be worshiped as part of the New Year celebrations.
Wat Mai, Luang Prabang, Laos
One of Luang Prabang's most beautiful temples
Wat Winsunalat, Luang Phabang - Laos
Wat Wisunalat (Vixoun, Visounnarath, Vixunhalat, Wisunarat) was originally built during the reign of King Wisunarat (or Vixoun, 1501-1520) in 1513 (some suggest 1512) and represents the earliest style, sometimes referred to as Luang Prabang Style I, of Lao temple architecture. This style also includes the sims of Wat That Luang and Wat Mai. Wat Wisunalat is Luang Prabang�s oldest operating temple. As with the sims of most Lao wats, there are multiple roof structures. In the Style I form the first and second roofs extend around the entire perimeter of the structure. Except for the sim at Wat Mai, which was embellished by two additional gable roofs and two roofed side galleries, the style evokes simplicity, since the sim employs neither the high peaks of the gable nor the dramatic low sweeping roofs of many of the other sims of Luang Prabang. Located and adjoining Wat Aham to the southeast, it was probably built on the rice fields of the guardian spirits of the city (devata luang), Pu No and Na No (Phou Nheu and Nha Nheu). The sacred Prabang image was housed in the sim from 1513 until it was taken to Vientiane in 1707.
The original highly ornate wooden sim was a spectacular example of Lao craftsmanship at its finest and was one of the most imposing religious structures of old Luang Prabang. It had a double roof with the upper roof raised high above the lower roof. It was over 118 ft. (36m) long and 59 ft. (18m) wide; perhaps 4,000 trees were used in its construction. Each of the twelve pillars supporting the roof was almost 100 ft. (30 meters) high. There were twenty-one windows with turned wooden balustrades. Louis Delaporte�s engraving of its appearance in the 1860s is included in the series of photographs that follow on this site and shows the unique character of the sim. Most of the partitions of the original building were carved wood, and the exterior, as portrayed in the engraving, made it one of the most beautiful in Luang Prabang. It also housed a major collection of rich religious objects and other objects d�art. Much of the sim and the city were destroyed during the invasion of the Chinese Haw Black Flags marauders in 1887.
The sim was rebuilt between 1896 and 1898 and during the reign of King Sakkarin Kamsuk (r. 1894-1903). The style was somewhat to the old sim with its numerous massive wooden beams, window placement and style of the roof, albeit the major part of the structure was brick and plaster in place of the wood. The window balustrades attempt to capture the flavor of the older turned wooden balustrades of the original sim. The sim today continues its existence as a valuable of museum religious art with numerous centuries old Buddha statues in bronze and gilded and unadorned wood, ordination precinct stones and other religious objects.
Another important and prominent feature of the wat is its unique That Pathoum, or Stupa of the Great Lotus, in the front and northeastern side of the sim. It is known more popularly as That Makmo, the �Watermelon Stupa� because of its rounded dome. The dome stylistically reflects a Sinhalese influence and is the only stupa of such a shape in Laos, and perhaps even in Cambodia or Vietnam. Originally erected between 1514 and 1515, it was destroyed during the Haw Black Flag incursion in 1887. Inside were numerous ancient Buddha images. Many were destroyed; a number are in the National Palace Museum, and some are in the sim itself. Its reconstruction was not seriously undertaken until the late 1920s, over thirty years after the reconstruction of the sim, and was completed in 1932. The stupa sets on a number of different square tiers and has a Lao-Buddhist style Usnisa crown at its top.
Sai Baht, Aham Corner, Luang Prabang, Laos
Alms Offering on Lao New Year at Aham Corner by Aussie Sports Bar and Guesthouse, Sisouphan Road, Luang Prabang, Laos.
Luang Prabang The Wats
The are an astounding number of temples in and around Luang Prabang. In this series, we look at the major Wats, mostly within walking distance of the center of the old town.
Luang Prabang Wat Visoun
Wat Visoun was built for King Visounnarat around 1512. The original massive timber temple was destroyed by a marauding gang in 1887. The current temple built around 1898 has few of the striking features of the original, except for the carved entry doors which were saved from the original and reinstalled in its replacement.
Luang Prabang Wat Manoram
Wat Manorom stands just outside the old city walls. It seems that this was the site of a very early Khmer temple which predated the establishment of the Lao kingdom in 1353. There is some evidence that the original Lao King, Fa Ngum, erected a temple on the site and a later temple was erected around 1375 by his son.
Luang Prabang Wat Xieng Thong
Wat Xieng Thong is the royal wat and throughout the history of Luang Prabang it has played a central role in both religious and political life.
Lao New Year at Wat Visoun, Luang Prabang, Laos
Visoun Temple in Luang Prabang, Laos during Boun Pi Mai or Lao New Year.
Vat Mai Suwannaphumaham, Luang Prabang, Laos
Wat Mai Suwannaphumaham in Luang Prabang, Laos.
Walking to Wat Souvanna Khiri, Luang Prabang, Laos
Morning Walk on Sakkarine Road (Sakkaline Road) in Luang Prabang, Laos.
Wat Wisunalat, Luang Prabang, Laos
Vat Visoun, known as Wat Wisunalat and where That Maak Mo (Watermelon Stupa) in located on the temple ground, in Luang Prabang, Laos.
in front of Wat manolom, Luang Prabang, Laos
in front of Wat manolom, Luang Prabang, Laos