Experience the Intangible "In Situ"

Tul Waitoonkiat, lead singer of the rock band Apartment Khunpa, teamed up with electronic composer Marmosets to rearrange a song composed by Second King Pinklao, interweaving traditional Thai instruments with contemporary electronic tools to create a song entitled “Ghosts of Wang Na."

As an introspective observer of human behavior and way of life, Tul questions whether our past is real or merely an illusion. What's gone is gone, but we still see traces of the past through architecture, folktales, literature, songs, or even textbook materials. And history may be, and can be distorted or interpreted differently from one person to the next.


Visitors can wear the provided headphones to experience the sounds on site, or scan the QR code printed on the handouts distributed to the public.

Unseen Plants of Precedence: Plum Blossoms and Peonies

Identifiable by its characteristic round petals, the plum blossom grows only in the more temperate climates of higher altitude, and is therefore, a tree that we can suspect no historical visitor to this space would have ever seen in the flesh.

Its relative rarity has imbued in it an association of luck' or 'status,' that historical painters may have seen depicted in the paintings of the Chinese and Japanese courts, or in religious manuscripts of the time.

Its inclusion here - as a special and an almost mythical flower amongst the more tropical plants of Thailand - can be seen as allegorical, whereby the plum blossom represents, or is associated with, a non-ordinary being such as a royal, amongst what would have been considered the more ordinary.

Durian, Yang Na, and Coconuts

Trees visible in this painting include:
Coconut trees (Cocos nucifera L.); a Durian tree with hanging fruits (Durio zibethinus L.); and a "Yang Na Tree" with its distinct white trunk and "black hole" due to resin extraction by fire (Dipterocarpus alatus Roxb. ex G. Don).

Coconut and Durian were two of the most common species of fruit trees found in the Bangkok Noi area.

The districts across the river from the Front Palace had once been the center of fruit production for the Kingdom, and as such, fruit such as durian were plentiful in this area throughout the Ayutthaya and early Rattanakosin periods; and even as recently as 50 years ago.

Mural paintings were a means by which painters could document history,and for those of us in modern-day Bangkok, we see evidence of vegetation that no longer exist in the present-day through the work of such painters.

King Rama V is used as an example. Born on a Tuesday, King Rama V is associated with a mythological animal, the lion; and to further ensure strength in his name, a set of letters associated with a desired trait were given as options to be included in the name.

Below the chart, we see King Rama V's princely name which was given to him by King Rama IV, both the letter chosen, as well as the corresponding mythological animal, "lion", integrated into the name.

อาคเน or Southeast of the chart from Tamrapichaisongram, we see the lion which is King Rama V's associated mythological animal

Deciphering King Rama IV's Name

1.Humanization and Individualization:
Rama IV retains the divine references of the devaraja-styled kings before him, but also breaks the mold by including his princely name “Mongkutklao” to his regnal name, thereby differentiating him as an individual who existed in the tangible world, rooted in a specific time. This simple act humanizes the King, rendering him a more accessible monarch.

In declaring his human lineage, “a descendent of Rama II” –albeit with the inherited qualities of the divine from mythic lineage as a descendent of the Mahasammata—Rama IV is seen as a King of divine-right grounded in the human realm.

The name also states he is “elected by the assembly of a great multitude of people,” underscoring his aspiration to have the support of the people, in order to serve the people. The idea of this consensus as a legitimizing force coupled with his divine lineage, gives Rama IV an unprecedented two-way backing for kingship.

Deciphering King Rama IV's Name

2. Abilities, Character, and Role in the Buddhist Faith:
Representative of his 27 years in the sangha, not only does Rama IV’s name position him as a divine king who protects the ‘triple gem,’ but as a king who is also a poet whose eloquence is complete and as an unblemished philosopher of Buddhism, well-versed in the Tripitika and the Buddha’s teaching.

It claims him to be a king who is compassionate, calm, kind, empathetic, and who also has qualities of focus and mindfulness and precision of thought that is associated with Buddhist meditation. These lines underscores the values and interests that King Mongkut believed were essential to his ability to rule: a keen understanding of his people, and a devotee of the Buddha’s teachings.

Deciphering King Rama IV's Name

3. As a "First King":
In elevating his brother from Viceroy to Second King, Rama IV maintains his status as the primary King by bestowing upon his brother the kingly ‘Bovorn’ (‘Excellent’) and creating for himself a superlative, ‘Borom’ (‘Utmost’). The words chosen for their respective names, reflect the unprecedented ascension of a Second King, and significantly shift the narrative of the era and the site.

By introducing the term “Borom”, King Mongkut not only raises his brother but also himself.
The use of the term ‘supreme’ should also be noted, since most terms related to lordship refer to his paramountcy and this is one of the key distinctions with the Second King.

Deciphering Second King Pinklao's Name

1. Brotherly Bonds:
King Pinklao’s name refers to him as “the lord who is the brother from the same (mother) as the great lord Mongkut,” grounding the Second King in a human lineage and reflecting the close brotherly relationship between the Kings as “uterine brothers” and “descendent[s] of Rama II.” From this starting point, we see that the two names, both of which Rama IV created, exist as complements to one another.

Deciphering Second King Pinklao's Name

2. Humanization and Individualization:
Second King Pinklao’s name is individualized through the inclusion of his princely name in his regnal name. The second term in his name, “Mahisaretrangasan”, is a play on words by both closely resembling the name he took on as Prince, “Isaretrangsan”, and also meaning “created by the great lord” in Sanskrit, the “great lord” in this case perhaps being Rama IV who was the one who elevated him to the rank of Second King.

This humanization is further emphasized through the choice of “Pinklao” as the name of the reign as it is a Thai synonym for the Sanskrit term “Chudamani”, meaning “crest jewel”, which was Pinklao’s name at his birth before he was elevated to a Prince of a higher rank under the name “Isaretrangsan.”

Deciphering Second King Pinklao's Name

3. Abilities, Character and Role as the ‘Protector”:
Rama IV bestows on his brother a name that reflects what he perceives to be his brother’s strongest qualities and abilities, including as a “protector” of the soil over which both brothers rule. This also signals a consideration of the original function of the Front Palace and its viceregal inhabitants as protectors of the Grand Palace.

Thus, Second King Pinklao’s military role as the “excellent great lord of the troops”—compared to Rama IV’s role as primary King—can be seen as a continuation of the Front Palace’s role during the Ayutthaya Era.

Deciphering Second King Pinklao's Name

4. As a Second King:
Despite elevating his brother to the level of kingship, Rama IV maintains and clarifies his position as the primary King, using epithets such as, “First King” and “Second King.” This distinction is reiterated throughout their names and reflected in other nuanced choices of words.

In addition to the “Borom” and “Bovorn” contrast noted earlier, Second King Pingklao is referred to as “Bovorn Chula Chakrapat” (“excellent lesser universal monarch”), and as one in possession of the 7-tier parasol, as opposed to Rama IV’s 9-tier parasol. Within the first sentences of their names, one also sees the use of “(Phrabat) Somdetch Mongkutklao” versus “Somdetch Pingklao.”