Ayutthaya - Wat Yai Chai Mongkol

On the eastern outskirts of Ayutthaya (cross the Pasak River and take the Bangkok road, turning right about 300 m (990 ft) beyond the railway) stands the exceptionally interesting Wat Yai Chai Mongkol, its massive chedi rising from a square base surrounded by four smaller chedis. The wat, built in 1357 under King U Thong, was assigned to monks of a particularly strict order trained in Ceylon, members of which still live there. In front of the chedi are the stumps of columns which once supported the roof of the temple.