Art and Culture / Museums Part 2
Listed here are museums in the more narrow sense of the word. The reader should consider that Thai art is not mainly housed in museums but in Wats and Royal palaces which are not just depositories of art but contain works of art that have a religious and social function until today.
Numbers in brackets refer to locations as indicated in maps in the Bangkok section.
National Museum
The museum within walking distance of the Grand Palace, across Sanam Luang, is one of the largest and most comprehensive museums in Southeast Asia. It houses over one thousand artifacts ranging from Neolithic times to the present Bangkok period, including furniture, weapons and porcelains. The complex was opened in 1924 in buildings dating back to 1782 and consists of several old but beautiful structures of colorful Thai architectural design. Originally the compound was the palace of the Thai deputy king. The museum is open everyday, except Mondays, Tuesdays and national holidays, from 9:00 to 16:00. Admission fee is 20 Baht. Guided tours are provided in the mornings.
Wiman Mek Palace (Teak Palace)
The palace located behind Bangkok’s National Assembly was the home of King Chulalongkorn. Attractions, aside from the palace itself, are collections of porcelain and gift items received by the King, antique furniture and last not least photos of the Royal family (Chulalongkorn had 77 children by 36 wives). The palace is open daily from 9:30 to 16:00; admission fee is 50 Baht. (For additional information please see the chapter Sightseeing in the Bangkok section.)
Jim Thompson s House
Soi Kasemsan 2, Rama I Road
near the National Stadium
Actually, it’s six houses re-assembled by the American who promoted Thai silk throughout the world. The houses do not only contain a variety of valuable objects of art but are an attraction in themselves. Open Mon-Sat 9:00-16:30; admission fee is 100 Baht. (For details, also on Jim Thompson, please see the Sightseeing chapter in the Bangkok section.)
Suan Pakkard Palace (Lacquer Pal.)
353 Sri Ayutthaya Road, near the intersection with Phaya Thai Road
Another complex of re-assembled old Thai houses in a beautiful garden. Actually, the place is the residence of Princess Chumbot Nagara Svarga, a famous Thai art collector. Aside from gold leaf inlaid lacquer work, artifacts from the excavation sites of Ban Chiang as well as ceramics and porcelains can be seen. Open Mon-Sat 9:00-16:00; admission fee is 50 Baht. (For more details see Sightseeing in the Bangkok section.)
Kamthieng House
Siam Society grounds
131 Soi 21 (Asoke), Sukhumvit Road
An ethnological museum in a Thai house from Chiang Mai which is more than 200 years old. Most objects on exhibition relate to the northern hill tribes; among them are costumes and farming artifacts. Open Tue-Sat 9:00-12:00 and 13:00-17:00; admission fee is 20 Baht.
Prasart Museum
9 Soi Krungthep Kritha 4A
Krungthep Kritha Road, Bangkapi
Tel 374-6384
This is the private museum of Mr Prasart, a life-long art collector. It’s located in a nice garden with a small Buddhist temple. Among the exhibits are many pieces of Bencharong porcelain.
Silpakorn University
Naprathat Road, near the Grand Palace
Tel 224-4702; being a university of fine arts, it has a small archaeological museum where exhibitions are also held for more recent objects of art.
Royal Thai Air Force Museum
Phahonyothin Rd, Tel 534-1575
near Don Muang Airport
Exhibition of old military aircraft, among them Nieuports, Breguets, a Spitfire and Boeing P12-E’s, as well as a Japanese Tachikawa trainer. Open Mon-Fri and on the first Saturday and Sunday of each month, 8:30-16:30. No admission charge.
Bangkok Dolls & Museum
All kinds of Thai dolls are made in this factory cum museum in the Pratunam area on Soi Ratchataphan (Soi Mo Leng) off Ratchaprarop Road. The place is open to visitors, who may inspect and buy dolls, daily except Sundays from 8:00 to 17:00 (Tel 245-3008).
Museum of Science and Planetarium
928 Sukhumvit Rd, near Ekamai Bus Station
In principle not different from planetariums anywhere in the world, but conveniently located for foreign residents in the Sukhumvit area who want to take children there. Open Wed-Sun 9:00-16:00, closed on holidays.
Thai Human Imagery Museum
Located at Km marker 31 of the Pinklao - Nakhon Chaisi Road the museum houses life-like sculptures created by a group of Thai artists. The figures are displayed in four sections: "The Great Buddhist Monks", "Former Kings of the Chakri Dynasty", "One Side of Thai Life" and "Playing Chess". The museum is open from 9:00 to 17:30 on weekdays and 8:30 to 18:00 on Saturdays, Sundays and official holidays. Admission fee is 140 Baht (Tel 01 / 211-6261)
Siriraj Hospital
For those who find the displays at the Thai Human Imagery Museum not genuine enough, the Siriraj Hospital near Phra Pinklao Bridge in Thonburi has a number of museums which make rather macabre attractions. Nevertheless, it’s a respectable institution as it was Thailand’s first modern hospital when it opened in 1888. The hospital’s Museum of the Dep. of Forensic Medicine houses, for example, the body of a Chinese mass murderer. Open Mon-Fri 9:00-14:00. Congdon’s Anatomical Museum, also under the administration of the Siriraj Hospital, shows a collection of dissected human organs.
| 
