Museum higlights of Bangkok

                                                                                         

Kicking off your tour, start at the National Museum, home to the kingdom’s leading collection of local art and artefacts. Located not far from Wat Phra Kaew, or the Grand Palace, it was founded by King Rama V and displays the treasures bestowed on him by his father. These days, it houses a well arranged range of exhibits chronicling the development of Thai history, and descriptions in English are available.

Suan Pakkad Palace Museum, the former palace of Prince Chumbhot and his wife Mom Rajawongse Pantip, displays the important role royalty played and still plays in Thai everyday life. Converted into a museum in 1952, the eight houses, built in traditional Thai style, are linked by corridors, thus forming a single, unified structure. The highlight is the display of the ancient Ban Chiang collection which dates back to 3600 BC to 200 AD and puts Ban Chiang on par with other major ancient world civilisations.

More lively royal exhibits, this time water based, can be admired at the Royal Barge Museum. This is where the Royal Thai barges are stored when not being used in one of the elaborate ceremonies on the nearby Chao Phraya River. Visitors can get a glimpse of how the barges are used during one of these exciting events. Measuring up to 50 metres in length, the old style barges make for quite an impressive sight.

Back among the hustle and bustle of the central shopping malls and department stores is the tranquil oasis of Jim Thompson’s House, tucked away down a little lane alongside one of Bangkok's few remaining canals. This old-style teak house was the former residence of Jim Thompson, who single handedly regenerated the Thai silk trade before later disappering in the Malysian Highlands under mysterious circumstances. Visitors can admire fine Asian art and artefacts and take a break in the coffee shop, set in the lush gardens.

More hair-raising history can be seen at the Bangkok Corrections Museum on Maha Chai road. This museum is housed in a former prison and gruesomely displays how the ancient penal system, based on retribution and sever punishment, was implemented. Life-sized wax figures can be seen upstairs in grisly execution scenes, while shopping fans will love the high quality furniture and handicrafts for sale in blocks 2 and 3, crafted by prisoners from prisons around Thailand.

Pirated goods are not only widely for sale on the streets and in the shopping centres of Bangkok. Now there’s a whole museum dedicated to the ingeniuty of modern-day counterfeiters. Established in 1989, the Museum of Counterfeit Goods exhibits pirated wares seized in raids, such as electronics, drugs, households appliances, car parts, clothing, leather goods and footwear.

About the author:
Entertainment and travel -related articles writer, Andy Burrows has become an expert on Bangkok’s excellent galleries and museums. The English tour guide usually uses these highly informative websites for up-to-date information;
The best Bangkok museums and Online guide to culture in Thailand

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