Vat Mai Souvannapoumahram
ວັດໄໝ່ ສຸວັນນະພູມາຣາມ
Originally founded around 1796 this temple was restored in 1821 when the porches at the front and back were added and it was renamed "The New Temple", Vat Mai. The galleries along each side were added in 1891. This was the temple of the royal family and still one of the most important in Luang Prabang. It was one of the few temples that survived the Haw invasion of 1887. Notable for its striking bright red five-tiered Lao style roof and the elaborate gold painted stucco scenes on the entrance wall dating from 1962 depicting the Ramayana and the Vessantara Jataka stories.
King Sakkalin appointed Pha Sangkhalat Tan Tissapanya Maha Tela (d.1911) as the first Supreme Patriarch of Luang Prabang and invited him to reside at Vat Mai. He had previously resided at Wat Maha That. He had been friends with Auguste Pavie, the first French Consul in Luang Prabang and when Pavie famously rescued King Ouan Kham from marauding Haw Chinese in July 1887, Pha Tan Tissapanya also travelled with them safety in Pak Lai. After his death in 1911 the road between the palace and Vat Mai was built and named in his honour, Thanon Sathou Tan. Vat Mai continued to be the seat of the Lao Supreme Patriarch until 1984. [www.orientalarchitecture.com]
The Prabang Buddha image was moved here from Vat Visoun in 1894 by King Sakkalin in an elaborate ceremony attended by Auguste Pavie. It remained here until 1947 when it was transferred to the Royal Palace. These days during Phi Mai each April the Prabang is bought back to the monastery for three days of veneration by the population of Luang Prabang.
King Sakkalin appointed Pha Sangkhalat Tan Tissapanya Maha Tela (d.1911) as the first Supreme Patriarch of Luang Prabang and invited him to reside at Vat Mai. He had previously resided at Wat Maha That. He had been friends with Auguste Pavie, the first French Consul in Luang Prabang and when Pavie famously rescued King Ouan Kham from marauding Haw Chinese in July 1887, Pha Tan Tissapanya also travelled with them safety in Pak Lai. After his death in 1911 the road between the palace and Vat Mai was built and named in his honour, Thanon Sathou Tan. Vat Mai continued to be the seat of the Lao Supreme Patriarch until 1984. [www.orientalarchitecture.com]
The Prabang Buddha image was moved here from Vat Visoun in 1894 by King Sakkalin in an elaborate ceremony attended by Auguste Pavie. It remained here until 1947 when it was transferred to the Royal Palace. These days during Phi Mai each April the Prabang is bought back to the monastery for three days of veneration by the population of Luang Prabang.
