Wat Pho Bang O

Wat Pho Bang O is a late-Ayutthaya-period temple on Bang Kruai-Sai Noi Road in Nonthaburi’s Bang Kruai district, known among Thai art historians for the murals inside its ubosot. Entry is free, daily 08:30-15:30.

The ubosot itself is architecturally significant on its own: it’s built with a phalai, an open gallery running around the exterior, in a style associated with the royal ubosots of the late Ayutthaya period — the same design tradition behind the ubosot of Bangkok’s Emerald Buddha Temple, though here on a modest village scale. What draws specialists, though, is what’s painted inside. Rather than the standard scenes from the Buddha’s life or Jataka tales found in most Thai temples, the murals depict pariznatham — dhamma riddles, allegorical images of the temptations and moral hazards that confront ordinary people, with the underlying message that ordination is the escape route. Art historians attribute the work to a high-skill Nonthaburi school of painters, likely active during the Rama III period (1824-1851), using a wet sago-starch-paste technique. The Nonthaburi mural style is recognisable by its light backgrounds and heavy use of red, distinct from the darker palettes typical of central Bangkok temple murals of the same era.

Because the murals are the temple’s main draw and the ubosot isn’t a high-traffic building, casual walk-up access isn’t guaranteed — the doors are sometimes closed outside prayer times or scheduled ceremonies. If viewing the murals specifically is why you’re making the trip, it’s worth calling ahead or asking whoever is on the grounds whether a monk can open the hall for you.

Insider Tip: Don’t expect a typical “golden Buddha and incense” temple visit here — the value is almost entirely in the ubosot’s murals, so build in time to ask about access rather than treating it as a quick drive-by stop.

Dress modestly — covered shoulders and knees — and remove your shoes if the ubosot is opened for you. The temple sits inland from the Chao Phraya, reached by road rather than the riverside piers that serve some of Bang Kruai’s other temples. Wat Bang Kanun and Wat Chalor, both a short drive away in the same district, offer more of Bang Kruai’s old wooden temple architecture.