Thalang National Museum

An introduction to Phuket's history

 

Thalang National Museum, PhuketTravelling provides travellers with more than pleasure. It also gives knowledge to those who seek for it. A journey will be more valuable and interesting if the travellers have a chance to learn about the historical background of the land they visit. An easy way to attain this is to drop by at a local museum.

Phuket, in the minds of most tourists or even the Thais, is sea, beach and islands. In fact Phuket has other attractions on land which are worth visiting. One of them is Thalang National Museum. When in Phuket, the land of a significant history, you are recommended to pay a visit to this place. The 13-rai (5.2 acres) site is situated on Pa Khlok Road, only 200 metres from the intersection of the Monument of the Two Heroic Sisters of Phuket.

Phuket was a locality sharing the honour of protecting the country's sovereignty during the war in 1785 in which a large number of Burmese troops were invading the coastal area just to the north of Thalang. But thanks to the leadership of the sisters Chan and Muk, the people of the whole city were united and were able to drive the Burmese out of the Thai territory.

To commemorate the 200th anniversary of the war, Phuket provincial administration, in cooperation with the Fine Arts Department, established Thalang National Museum to be a knowledge centre of history, archaeology, art and culture of this region.

The building was constructed in 1985 and was inaugurated with HRH Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn presiding over on 14 March 1989. Additional constructions were built in 1997, resulting in more exhibition space and advanced multimedia techniques to draw more museum goers.

The Building Architecture

 

The exhibition hall was designed in the local style with three-side thatched roofs and a gable. Because of its unique architectural style, the Thalang Museum's construction later won the Architectural Design Award from the Association of Siamese Architects under the royal patronage of His Majesty King Bhumibol.

The exhibits are permanently displayed in five buildings:

 

Main Hall

In this hall, visitors will find the explanations of the overall Thai civilization including prehistoric time, historical time and its relationship with the ancient Khmer Kingdom. Moreover, there are sections divided according to the historical periods from Sukhothai, Ayutthaya and Thon Buri right up to the present Rattanakosin (Bangkok).

The highlight in this hall is the sculptures of Vishnu with deities -- Bhu Devi and Laksamana at his sides in attendance. This group of Pallava-style sculptures aged around 1,100-1,200 years.

 

Exhibition Room 1

The room is divided into two sections:

The first section highlights Phuket Island's geography, topography and mineral and water resources.

The second section showcases archaeological artefacts of the early inhabitants of Phuket Island and the Andaman coast, prehistoric cave paintings, and stories of Thalang and Phuket in the Ayutthaya Period (1350-1767 A.D.).

In this room there is a bronze Dong Son drum of the Vietnamese civilization, which was used in battles. The face of the drum was decorated with figures of animals to symbolize the land's fertility. As we see today, only figures of seashells are left.

 

Exhibition Room 2

The room displays a scene of the Thalang War in 1785 in which the two heroines were planning strategies with their people and the scene of Chan and Muk receiving the royal command bestowing on them the titles of Thao Thep Kasattri and Thao Si Sunthon respectively.

Another side of the room shows the story of Phraya Ratsada (1857-1913), the model governor of Phuket.

 

Exhibition Room 3

In this room, visitors will find the explanation of the background of the important role the Chinese immigrants played in Phuket's economic development. Artefacts in this room include Chinese banknotes, abacuses, writing brushes, etc.

 

Exhibition Room 4

The sea gypsies' ways of life are exhibited here. Visitors will also see how Phuket earned its other name "Pearl of the Andaman".

Museum's Services

 

• Educational services with assistants to guide visitors through the exhibits
• Documents related to archaeology, history, art and culture
• Archaeological and historical textbooks

 

Information :           Tel. 0 7631 1426

Open :                    Daily, 09.00-16.00 hrs., except national holidays

Admission Fee :       30 Baht

For taxi :                 พิพิธภัณฑ์ถลาง