Floral - robed Ornamentation on Buddha Images in Rattanakosin Art

Abstract

               Floral - robed Buddha images cast from metal are widely distributed throughout Thailand. However, the form and method of making these Buddha images have not been thoroughly investigated. This article aims to employ art historical methodologies, historical documents, and interviews the artisans to analyse the evolution, the origins, and the factors contributing to the decline of the floral robe Buddha image, as well as to identify the reasons for variations in their forms across different periods.

               Thefindings indicate that metal - cast Buddha images with floral robes from the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries CEexhibit stylistic  similarities to those produced in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries CE. These images are likely the earliest group of floral robe Buddha images created through casting, resulting from the use of soapstone moulds since at least the reign of King Rama III. Most of the soapstone was likely sourced from Khao Cha - ngok, a site that continues to supply material today.

               Floral robe Buddha images produced in the early to mid - twentieth century CE were influenced by the Phra Buddha Chinnarat group of Sukhothai style, in part due to the prominence of the royal court and nobility since the reign of King Rama IV. Additionally, these images were shaped by Lanna art Buddha images originating from Chiang Saen were regarded as ‘an authentic Siamese style’ and were believed to date back to the eleventh to twelfth centuries CE.

               The general group of Sukhothai Buddha images also appeared in floral - robed Buddha images during the first half of the twentieth century CE. This trend is likely related to the use of Sukhothai art and culture to foster nationalist ideas since the reign of King Rama VI, as well as the publication of Sukhothai studies during that period. The decline of floral - robed Buddha images was likely due to the increasing popularity of Sukhothai Buddha images and the relatively high price of Buddha images with  floral robes, which contrasted sharply with the serious economic decline in Siam at that time.