Ban Roi An Phan Yang
Ban Roi An Phan Yang in Hang-dong district can be spotted easily, as it stands on Highway No. 108 (Chiang Mai – Sanpatong – Jom Thong route) between KM 19 and 20. Heading there from Chiang Mai, you will find it on your left hand side. An alternative to driving there by yourself is getting on any yellow buses at Chiang Mai city gate which head to the following directions: Tung Siew, Nong Tong, Jom Thong, Ban Kard and Makham Luang. Ban Roi An Phan Yang is a private museum devoted to a large collection of wood crafts. The museum has been established from the strong passion and the intention to preserve traditional Lanna art and culture. Charuay Na Sunthorn exhausted his personal saving to collect and set up this museum to display wood crafts, mainly from teak wood, made by highly skilled Lanna craftsmen.
When stepping in the museum, visitors will be dazzled by the exquisiteness and magnificence of handmade wood crafts. Some are incredibly carved to 3 dimensional figures. Here are some examples of distinguished items that worth mentioning: the head of the King Elephant which is considered the museum’s masterpiece, or the mythical Arnon Fish carrying the world. The special feature of the image of Kruba Srivichai (Northern Buddhist monk) carved on Cassod wood is that this kind of hardwood symbolizes the strength of Kruba Srivichai to overcome obstacles, even though the use of Cassod wood may ruin the craftsman’s tools. Additionally, there is also a very rare collection of wood crafts made of Black Ebony. The 2nd floor displays wood crafts about moral lessons, Buddhism images, deities, the legendary Himmaphan forest, etc. After appreciating the beauty of wood craft collection, visitors can spend leisure time in the backyard garden where there are varieties of plants, craft works and a Thai pavilion. Gifts and local products can be purchased at the souvenir store.
Ban Roi An Phan Yang is open every day from 8:30 to 16:30. Tour guides are available. The admission fee is 100 baht for an individual, 50 baht/person for university student group, 10 baht/person for school student group, and 200 baht for foreigners. For more details, please call 0 5335 5819, 0 5382 2649.