Ku Ka Sing

Terrain

General condition

Kaset Wisai district, which is in the lower part of the province. It is a plain on the banks of the Mun River and its tributaries. It is a low, wide area known as Thung Kula Ronghai. It is a plain with a slope to the east. It is characterized by sand dunes and waves. by the location of Ku Ka Sing It is an oval mound, approximately 720 x 2000 meters.

Height above mean sea level

Waterway

Chi River, Siew River, Tao River, Phlapphla River

Geological conditions

The structure of the soil consists of sandstone with a pan bottom shape. and the plains of the old river The rock set consists of sedimentary rocks or sedimentary rocks in the Korat series. The soil series is the Ubon soil series. which is caused by river sediment that flows and deposits on the lower part of middle Terrace.

Archaeological Era

era/culture

Archaeological age

Types of archaeological sites

archaeological essence

Ku Ka Sing Castle It is a castle in the art of Baphuon. (between the second half of the 16th Buddhist century - the 18th Buddhist century), the history of its creation is unknown. and creator name But the age is determined from the evidence of the art that appears at Prasat Ku Ka Sing, which has the Bapuan art form. As will be discussed later

Ku Ka Sing Castle faces the east. Relating to the community baray farther in front of the religious site (Wanwipha Suneta 2009:72) The main castle group consists of three castles. It is located on a laterite base. arranged in a north-south direction The central castle, which is the largest, is the most important. There is a Mondop enshrined Conondi, which is the vehicle of Lord Shiva. protruding forward Therefore, the central castle should have enshrined the idol of Lord Shiva (Rungrott Thammarungruang 2005:104). Within the area, there are two librarians set facing the main castle. A map of the temple emphasizes the importance of the core. The castle is surrounded by a U-shaped moat. But now it's all shallow Next to the moat along the main axis there is an entrance door (gopura) laterite mixed with brick crosses as the entrance to the east and west is drawn as a glass wall surrounding the main castle. In the center of the north and south glass walls are pseudo Gopura. Each side is divided into rooms with a door to the inner chamber of the Gopura only within the glass wall. The exterior is made of solid walls along the lines.

The pita base has two construction traces, the first being a lotus base without any carvings. Later, there were additional monasteries. causing the need to expand the base to cover the original base There are stairs leading up in front and on the side of the main castle porch.

The main castle It is made of brick and has architectural elements carved from sandstone. The castle plot is square, adding angles. There is a front arch. The other side is a pseudo arch. In front, there is a mandade protruding in front. There are traces of the front mandop up later. along with the formation of a python that protrudes in front of the mondop and also build a mask to expand the base of python on all sides Covering the base of the inner python (Pavinee Rattanasereesuk 2008 62)

Ku Ka Sing Castle Base Set Consisting of a laterite base, a lotus base placed on the base of the chopping board The main castle and the Mondop are located on the 2nd tier of sandstone base. The base of the mandop is a lotus flower base. Different from the base of the 3 president's castle, which is the base of the crystal ball lotus. The main characteristics are The tendency to increase the height of the middle castle causing the lotus footnotes to be in the middle of the mondop wall The proportions of the lotus footnotes have been improved from the rules for decorating the lotus footnotes of the castle in the past. is to add another row of lotus wire but no pattern engraving (Wanwipha Suneta 2009 :76)

The upper part of the castle and the elemental house had already collapsed. But found evidence of a large number of carved sandstone decorations, such as a replica castle, an ancestral representation of hermits and goddesses, which were used to decorate the corners of the stacked floors. The model castle has square walls adding to the corners. The roof tier is curved, showing a rough ornamentation without engraved into the tiers.

The apex of the middle castle should begin to show the development of its shape in the overlapping section to be curved to match the shape of the arch used for decoration, which is a slightly inclined arch, similar to the shape of an embroidered naga, but not carved. which is the development of the top of the castle in the later period (For example, Prasat Hin Phimai), while the other two castles flanked by them are still decorated with replica buildings (Wannawipha Suneta 2009:78). There is a pattern of protruding teeth that is different from the Kiat Muk on the lintel at other castles (Supatradit Diskun, 1967 :18)

Because no inscriptions referring to the establishment of Ku Ka Sing were found Therefore, the age is determined from the decorative style, which is mostly classified as the art of baptism. together with the analysis of the proportions of Prasat Ku Ka Sing mentioned above It was found that there were several elements that were improved in the Khmer castle during the 16th Buddhist century, namely the tendency to increase the height of the castle base to be higher than the mondop. But there is a regulation of the lotus base of the castle relics, improved from the previous Khmer castle. In addition, the roof decorations found around the central castle that are shaped like nak-pak are important developments of the Khmer castle during this period. Therefore, the age of Prasat Ku Ka Sing at the end of the 16th Buddhist century was determined to match the Baphun art style.

From the Fine Arts Department database Indicates that the excavation of the Ku Ka Sing archaeological site Architectural elements such as the lintel of Indra were found above the face of Kala, in the Khmer style of Baphuon. Lintel of Indra on the Erawan elephant Damaged condition, leaving only the front part of the steering wheel. Bapuan art, a replica castle, jackfruit petals, as well as idol sculptures such as Shiva Lingam, a head sculpture of Lord Shiva. Baphuon Khmer Art Ganesh sculpture Baphuon art and probably the prototype of Angkor Wat art. Chisel-like stone carving tools, made of iron, large slags, fierce stones and earthenware fragments, are of both tough clay bodies. and coating machine

According to legends and folk tales that have been passed down in this area, the name Ban Ku Ka Sing comes from the ancient remains that appeared in the village. which when the Khmer civilization declined, leaving the castle desolate The thick forest had become a mysterious land that little was known about. which at one point was the governor of Suvarnabhumi (Ancient city in the vicinity of Ban Ku Ka Sing) has come to farm in the swamp near Ku Ka Sing. by having his servants come to look after the fields Later, the general public called this swamp Nong Anya, which means the swamp or the land of the governor until the year 1903, so people from Thailand and Laos migrated to set up their houses and live until they became a very popular country. stable and prosperous And after that, there are people who know Ku Ka Sing respectively.

For the names of Baan Ku Ka Sing and Prasat Ku Ka Sing Probably from the word "Ku", which the villagers will use to refer to Khmer archaeological sites that look like stupa or pagodas. In the past, this area used to have a lot of crows. As an old man told me that in the evening, many crows come to sleep in one of the swamps in the north of the village. In the past, people called that swamp "Nong Kanon" and the word "Ka" may have changed from the word "Ka" in Central Thai, such as grandfather and grandmother, meaning grandfather and grandmother, or grandfather and grandmother, or came from old people Pronounced as Ku Ka Sing, while the word "Singha" comes from a sculpture of two lions that used to be placed in front of the entrance to both elephants. which is a popular ideology in Khmer art.

The present Ku Ka Sing is located within the compound of Wat Burapha Ku Ka Sing Noi. Wat Burapha Ku Ka Sing Noi was established in 1929, the villagers called it. Wat Burapha Ku Noi or Wat Noi is located in the east of the village, so it is named Wat Burapha

There are many ancient communities and Khmer archaeological sites that are similar in age to Ku Ka Sing, for example, on the northeast side is Ku Phon Wit, on the east side is Prasat Ban Hin Kong, Ku Phra Kona, Ku Phon Rakang, the ancient town of Ban Lao Khao. The archaeological site of two-storey houses, Ban Som Hong, Ban Phon Duan, which has evidence of living from prehistoric times to historical periods. The west side is in the area of ​​Wat That is an ancient site with a layout similar to a synagogue in the reign of Jayavarman VII. Another river is Lam Tao, which appears the ancient city of Ban Phon Thong, Ban Saen Si, etc. It is an ancient city with the same culture as home. Ku Ka Sing as well