Chaiya Attractions

Nearest airport: Surat Thani (up to four flights a day from Bangkok).

Archaeological finds typically Gupta (4th-6th c.) in style indicate that Indian traders from Madras were visiting this town on the east coast of Thailand as early as the 5th c. (and probably even earlier). Chaiya in fact was one of the principal trading cities of the Srivijaya empire (8th-13th c.) which encompassed the greater part of the Indonesian archipelago (Sumatra, Java, Malaysia) and the southern part of Thailand roughly as far up as present-day Hua Hin (60 km (37 mi.) north of Petchaburi). Although much of the town's history remains obscure, many historians now believe Chaiya to have been the capital of the empire, not Palembang in Sumatra as was previously thought. This is supported by the large number of archaeological finds from Chaiya (far in excess of those made at Palembang). Further testimony is provided by various stone inscriptions.

Of Chaiya's former prominence and splendor and its role in Indo-Asiatic maritime trade, few vestiges now remain. With its maritime links severed, the town lies almost forgotten, though archaeologists continue to unearth more and more evidence of its earlier highly developed culture. Of the pinnacle of architectural achievement reached in the Srivijaya period, Chaiya's Wat Phra Mahathat provides the last truly well-preserved example. Others have survived, in Nakhon Si Thammarat especially, but all have fallen partly into ruin.