Phra Phong Suphan (Thai: พระผงสุพรรณ; Chinese: 帕蓬素攀 / 素攀佛) is an ancient fired clay votive tablet recovered in 1913 (BE 2456) from the main reliquary tower (prang) of Wat Phra Si Rattana Mahathat in Mueang Suphan Buri district, Suphanburi province [1], [2], [4]. Cast in a compact pentagonal or truncated-triangle frame that depicts the seated Buddha in the subduing-Mara posture (ปางมารวิชัย) with U Thong-style facial features, it represents the Suphannabhumi artistic tradition within Thailand's five-piece Benjapakee (เบญจภาคี) canon [1], [12], [13]. Although its modern name translates literally as "powder amulet of Suphanburi," authentic examples are fine-grained baked terracotta blended with botanical pollen and sacred herbs rather than chalk-based plaster [4], [5], [8].
Key facts
| Fact | Detail | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Thai and Chinese names | พระผงสุพรรณ (Phra Phong Suphan); earlier local name พระเกสรสุพรรณ (Phra Keson Suphan); 帕蓬素攀 | [1], [4], [9] |
| Origin temple | Main prang of Wat Phra Si Rattana Mahathat, Rua Yai subdistrict, Mueang Suphan Buri district, Suphanburi | [1], [2], [3] |
| Official crypt opening | BE 2456 (1913 CE) under Suphanburi governor Phraya Sunthonburi (Yi Kannasut) during the reign of King Vajiravudh (Rama VI) | [4], [5], [16] |
| Epigraphic attribution | Gold and silver palm-leaf inscription plates (ลานทอง / ลานเงิน) naming Phra Maha Thera Piyathassi Sariputta and Phra Ruesi Phimphilalai | [1], [4], [6] |
| Standard clay moulds | Three facial moulds: Phim Na Kae (Old Face), Phim Na Klang (Middle Face), and Phim Na Num (Young Face) | [1], [5], [8] |
| Material and firing | Finely sieved terracotta clay mixed with herbal pollen (เกสรว่าน), fired in black, green, red, and yellow (พิกุล) tones | [5], [6], [7] |
| Dimensions | Reference museum example measures approximately 2.8 cm in height, with bevelled knife-cut edges and a thumb-whorl reverse | [1], [5], [8] |
| Canon status | Added in BE 2495 (1952 CE) by Col. Prayoon Kittiprawat (Triyampawai) to complete the five-amulet Benjapakee set | [13], [14], [16] |
Wat Phra Si Rattana Mahathat and the ancient city of Suphannabhumi
Wat Phra Si Rattana Mahathat stands on Malaiman Road in Rua Yai subdistrict, Mueang Suphan Buri district, on the western bank of the Suphan Buri (Tha Chin) River [2], [3], [6]. During the late Sukhothai and early Ayutthaya eras, this settlement formed the ritual center of Mueang Suphannabhumi, a western central-plain polity closely linked to the U Thong dynasty [1], [2], [3]. In Thai monastic usage, Wat Phra Si Rattana Mahathat designates a principal royal temple built to enshrine a corporeal relic of the Buddha (พระบรมสารีริกธาตุ) [3], [4].
The compound's architectural centerpiece is its brick-and-stucco main prang (พระปรางค์องค์ใหญ่), which served as the city's primary reliquary tower [2], [3]. Fine Arts Department curators date the monument and its votive deposits to the U Thong tradition of the fourteenth to early fifteenth centuries [1], [2], [3]. Alongside Phra Ruang Rodrangsi and Khao Ngu metal images from the same chamber, the terracotta tablets sealed inside the prang form one of central Thailand's best-documented archaeological hoards [3], [4], [5].
The 1913 (BE 2456) crypt discovery in Suphanburi
By the early twentieth century, Wat Phra Si Rattana Mahathat lay partly overgrown inside the old city walls [4], [10], [11]. According to Thai press and museum accounts, Chinese vegetable gardeners living near the compound illicitly tunneled into the crypt (กรุ) of the main prang prior to 1913 in search of precious metals [3], [4], [5]. The looters took gold images, silver vessels, and several inscribed sheets, while scattering hundreds of clay and lead-tin votive tablets around the stupa base because earthenware amulets held little cash value at the time [4], [5], [10].
When word of the break-in reached provincial authorities in BE 2456 (1913 CE), Suphanburi governor Phraya Sunthonburi (Yi Kannasut / พระยาสุนทรบุรี อี้ กรรณสูต) ordered an official opening of the prang chamber [4], [5], [6]. Officials inventoried the remaining crypt contents and placed the recovered clay and metal tablets into state custody [4], [5]. Later in 1913, when King Vajiravudh (Rama VI) visited Suphanburi to inspect the Don Chedi monument, Phraya Sunthonburi presented a selection of the Wat Phra Si Rattana Mahathat amulets to the King for distribution to courtiers and officers [4], [6], [16].
The gold-leaf inscription plates (จารึกลานทอง) and creation account
Among the artifacts found inside the reliquary were gold and silver inscription plates (จารึกลานทอง / ลานเงิน) engraved in Pali and ancient Khmer (ขอม) script [1], [4], [6]. Because looters melted several original gold sheets before officials sealed the site, researchers rely on surviving transcriptions copied into six manuscript transcripts (คัดลอกออกเป็น 6 สำเนา) after the crypt opening [4], [6], [15].
The text records the construction of the prang and the consecration of its votive tablets [1], [4], [11]. A monarch of the Suphannabhumi–Ayutthaya lineage invited the senior monk Phra Maha Thera Piyathassi Sariputta (พระมหาเถระปิยะทัสสี ศรีสารีบุตร) to preside over the monastic assembly, while four forest ascetics (ฤๅษี) led by Phra Ruesi Phimphilalai (พระฤๅษีพิมพิลาไลย)—often named alongside Ruesi Ta Fai, Ruesi Ta Wua, and Ruesi Thawalai—supplied the formula for the clay and botanical binder [1], [4], [8], [11].
Thai sources record two chronological readings of the king named in the inscription:
- Mid-fourteenth century (U Thong / Borommarachathirat I): Epigraphic summaries associate the deposit with BE 1890 (1347 CE)—or BE 1886 in variant readings—linking it either to Somdet Phra Chao U Thong (Ramathibodi I) or to Somdet Phra Borommarachathirat I (Khun Luang Pha Ngua) [2], [4], [5], [6].
- Early fifteenth century (Borommarachathirat II): Thailand's Fine Arts Department and Thai Wikipedia note that architectural and epigraphic evidence also points to Somdet Phra Borommarachathirat II (Chao Sam Phraya, r. 1424–1448 CE) [1], [3].
The inscription adds that sacred flowers, medicinal roots (ว่านยา), and mineral earth were pressed into moulds, fired, and sealed inside the chamber so future generations could maintain the monument [4], [5], [15].
Why a terracotta tablet is called Phra Phong
In modern Thai terminology, phra phong (พระผง) usually denotes unfired chalk and shell-lime plaster tablets such as Phra Somdej Wat Rakhang [4], [11]. By contrast, Phra Phong Suphan is a kiln-fired earthenware (เนื้อดินเผา) tablet [1], [5], [6].
Columnist Plai Chumphon notes that Suphanburi residents originally called these tablets Phra Keson Suphan (พระเกสรสุพรรณ, "pollen amulet of Suphanburi") because the inscription plates emphasized flower pollen and ground wan herbs (ผงเกสรดอกไม้และว่านวิเศษ) mixed into the clay [4], [5], [9]. When Col. Prayoon Kittiprawat (Triyampawai) standardized the national five-amulet canon in the mid-twentieth century, the name Phra Phong Suphan became universal [4], [13], [14]. When cast in lead-tin pewter (เนื้อชินเงิน / ตะกั่ว) from the same moulds and 1913 crypt, the metal variant is classified separately as Phra Suphan Yot Tho (พระสุพรรณยอดโถ) [4], [5], [10].
The three standard moulds (พิมพ์) and U Thong stylistic phases
Specialists divide clay Phra Phong Suphan tablets into three standard moulds based on facial morphology, torso proportions, and the evolution of U Thong sculpture in Suphanburi [1], [5], [8], [10]. All three moulds share a compact five-sided frame with a flat truncated apex (ทรงสามเหลี่ยมตัดยอด / ห้าเหลี่ยม) and depict the Buddha seated in ปางมารวิชัย (right hand lowered over the knee in earth-witness gesture) on a simple single-line dais without a decorative halo arch [1], [4], [8].
| Mould name | Thai script | U Thong art phase | Defining anatomical traits | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Phim Na Kae (Old Face) | พิมพ์หน้าแก่ | Early U Thong (Khom-influenced) | Furrowed brow, deep nasolabial lines, austere visage, right ear longer than left, 3–4 tiny clay nodules under left chest | [1], [5], [8], [10] |
| Phim Na Klang (Middle Face) | พิมพ์หน้ากลาง | Middle U Thong | Balanced oval face, fuller cheeks than Na Kae, symmetrical ear terminals, broad chest tapering smoothly to waist | [1], [5], [8], [12] |
| Phim Na Num (Young Face) | พิมพ์หน้าหนุ่ม | Late U Thong (Sukhothai-influenced) | Smooth youthful countenance, gentle smile, slender neck, softer shoulder line and narrower waist | [1], [4], [8], [10] |
1. Phim Na Kae (พิมพ์หน้าแก่ — Old Face mould)
Phim Na Kae reflects the earliest U Thong sculptural idiom, which retained strong affinities with Dvaravati and Khmer Bayon-period stone carving [1], [4], [8]. The face looks stern and mature, with pronounced brow ridges, deep creases beside the mouth, and a prominent chin that gives the impression of an elderly ascetic [5], [8], [10]. On well-struck specimens, the viewer's left ear (the Buddha's right ear) hangs noticeably lower than the opposite ear and curves outward near the shoulder [5], [8]. Beneath the Buddha's left pectoral muscle sit three to four microscopic clay beads or nodules (เม็ดผด 3–4 เม็ด), and the fingertips of the meditation hand (left hand resting in the lap) stop just short of touching the right wrist [5], [8], [10].
2. Phim Na Klang (พิมพ์หน้ากลาง — Middle Face mould)
Phim Na Klang bridges the austere early style and the gentler late style [1], [8]. The facial planes are fuller and less gaunt than on Phim Na Kae, without deep forehead wrinkles, while the shoulders remain wide and square [5], [8], [12]. Across all three moulds, Thai connoisseurs compare the broad upper chest and tapering waist of the torso to the silhouette of an elephant's head (อกผายไหล่ผึ่งคล้ายหัวช้าง), with the arms curving inward like an elephant's ears and trunk [4], [8], [10].
3. Phim Na Num (พิมพ์หน้าหนุ่ม — Young Face mould)
Phim Na Num incorporates the serene, oval facial proportions of classic Sukhothai art that spread across central Thailand during the late fourteenth and early fifteenth centuries [1], [4], [8]. The face is smooth and unlined, the nose bridge is narrower, and the overall posture appears lighter and more slender than in the older moulds [8], [10].
Clay composition, firing colors, and reverse fingerprint diagnostics
Authenticating a Phra Phong Suphan relies on examining three interdependent physical signatures: the levigated clay body, the kiln-firing color spectrum, and the hand-finishing marks on the sides and back [5], [7], [8].
Fine herbal terracotta (เนื้อดินผสมผงเกสร)
Unlike many coarse medieval votive tablets that contain visible river gravel, the clay of Wat Phra Si Rattana Mahathat was washed and sieved through fine cloth until virtually all sand grains were removed [5], [8]. When examined under a 10x loupe, the matrix looks dense, smooth, and slightly unctuous (หนึกนุ่ม), speckled with tiny reddish-brown inclusions known as wan dok makham (ว่านดอกมะขาม, tamarind-flower herbal specks) and minute voids where organic pollen burned out in the kiln [5], [6], [8]. Five centuries inside the humid brick chamber also left fine black spots of crypt fungus (ราดำ) embedded deep within the pores of the terracotta rather than sitting loose on top [5], [6], [7].
The four kiln colors and nuea phan (เนื้อผ่าน)
Because the tablets were stacked inside wood-fired kilns where oxygen flow and heat varied by position, authentic pieces occur in four recognized color grades [5], [6], [7]:
- Black (สีดำ): Exposed to heavy reduction smoke and high heat; the scarcest and most prized tone in Thai competition grading [5], [6].
- Green (สีเขียว / เขียวคาบเหลือง): Fired at high temperature until the iron-rich clay vitrified into a hard olive or moss-green skin; ranked second in rarity after black [5], [6].
- Red (สีแดง): Oxidized in steady medium-high heat, producing a warm brick-red or terracotta surface [5], [6].
- Yellow (สีเหลือง / สีพิกุล): Exposed to lower kiln heat, yielding a pale buff or dried phikun-flower yellow body that is softer to the touch [5], [6].
When a tablet from the cooler outer zones of the kiln shows a pale yellow or reddish exterior that has worn down on the high points (such as the forehead, chest, and knees) to expose a darker grey or black reduced core underneath, Thai specialists call the texture nuea phan (เนื้อผ่าน, "transition body") [7].
Knife-cut bevels and the thumb-whorl reverse
After pressing the damp clay into the stone or bronze face matrix, the artisan pressed the back of the clay firmly with a thumb to drive the details into the deepest recesses of the mould [1], [5], [8]. As a result, the reverse is slightly convex (หลังอูม) and almost always preserves a curved thumbprint pattern (ลายนิ้วหัวแม่มือ) with concentric whorl or rattan-weave ridges (ก้นหอยหรือมัดหวาย), which temple lore attributes to Phra Maha Thera Piyathassi himself [5], [8], [10]. Finally, the excess clay flange was sliced away from back to front with a sharp blade or bamboo slat, leaving angled, bevelled edges (รอยตอกตัดเฉียง) around all five sides [5], [8].
Role in the Benjapakee canon and market history
In BE 2495 (1952 CE), the military officer and pioneering amulet scholar Col. Prayoon "Pachon" Kittiprawat, writing under the pen name Triyampawai (ตรียัมปวาย), expanded his earlier three-amulet grouping (Traiphakhi / ไตรภาคี: Phra Somdej Wat Rakhang, Phra Rod Lampun, and Phra Nang Phaya Phitsanulok) by adding Phra Phong Suphan and Phra Sum Kor of Kamphaeng Phet [12], [13], [14], [16]. This five-piece set became known as the Benjapakee (เบญจภาคี, "The Five Associates"), bringing together one representative small seated Buddha tablet from each of Thailand's major historical eras: Dvaravati/Hariphunchai, Sukhothai, U Thong/Suphannabhumi, Ayutthaya, and Rattanakosin [13], [14], [15].
On 20 June 2004, Thailand Post commemorated the canon by issuing a national postage stamp sheet featuring all five Benjapakee amulets at 9 baht per stamp in a print run of 1,500,000 sets, with Phra Phong Suphan occupying one of the five positions [17]. In Thai popular devotion and collector literature, the tablet is traditionally associated with status, benevolent authority (เมตตามหานิยม), and personal invulnerability (แคล้วคลาดคงกระพัน), beliefs that writers trace back to the promises recorded in the 1913 gold-leaf inscription plates [1], [6], [14], [15].
In the Thai high-end collector market, pristine specimens with sharp facial features and original crypt patina trade for multiple millions of Thai baht [6], [9], [13]. In April 2015, Kom Chad Luek documented the celebrated Phim Na Kae specimen known as Ong Than Lop (องค์ท่านลภ, formerly in the collection of Gen. Chanalop Surasit), noting that top-tier examples had crossed the ten-million-baht threshold in private transactions [9]. In August 2026, Thairath reported a championship-grade green-clay (สีเขียวนิยม) Phim Na Kae tablet changing hands in the multi-million-baht bracket, while also citing a 2026 survey view among Bangkok dealers that complete five-piece Benjapakee sets in museum condition command tens of millions of baht [6], [13]. Readers comparing current market tiers across verified series can also check observed listing prices.