Ban Wat ancient city

Terrain

General Condition

Ban Wat Ancient City is one of the three ancient towns of Yarang Ancient City. It is at the southern end of the city group. From the study, it was found that it was probably the first community of Yarang ancient community.

The town plan is rectangular in shape, defined by a moat area and a high hilly rectangular inner city. There are traces of ditches dug around in the shape of squares of various sizes. like small islands connected in groups These ditches are connected to natural ditches in the west and inland basins in the south. East and North

The current soil condition is mostly worn out and shallow. Appears to be just a trench with a difference in area level. With the exception of the western moat, which has been replaced by a smaller ditch which most likely resembles the original ditch.

Height above mean sea level

Waterway

It is in the influence area of ​​the Pattani River Basin and the waterways secondary to Ban Don Wai and Ban Panan, which is a branch of the old Pattani River in the east. (Currently, only evidence remains to be seen as an old waterway)

Geological conditions

It is a plain formed by the deposition of sediments of the Pattani River in the Cenozoic era. (Office of Archeology and National Museum No. 10 Songkhla 1998 :13)

Archaeological Era

era/culture

Archaeological age

Mythological age

Types of archaeological sites

archaeological essence

Ban Wat ancient city It is located at the southern end of the ancient city of Yarang. It is assumed to be the city's first community site. The city plan is rectangular in shape. Determined with a ditch area (dig a ditch to the water retention level) and have a rectangular inner city with high hills There are traces of ditches dug around in a rectangular shape, similar in size to small islands connected in groups. These ditches are connected to natural ditches in the west and inland basins in the south. east and north On these islands there are ancient mounds. The city centers on a square-like courtyard measuring 150x170 meters, paved with brick and zigzag tiles.

The survey found more than 20 mounds of buildings, divided into

In the city Found the ruins of 4 brick buildings and 3 ancient ponds.

- West of the city near the ban wat mosque Togo Cemetery and Temple Village, find the remains of 13 brick structures and 3 large ancient ponds.

- Area on the north, west and south of the city Ruins of 11 brick buildings were found scattered alone.

from the evidence in the excavation Most of the evidence was found to be built on religion. Within the city may be divided into activity areas. This can be seen from the boundary of the ancient site with a moat. The square at the center of the city is lined with bricks and serrated tiles, which were assumed to be used as a ceremonial ground from the excavation of four test pits. Excavation of the courtyard in 1990 found evidence of deposition at the courtyard. The density is different from that on the east side of the courtyard where the cultural layer is dense and many lines of bricks are stacked on top of each other. The age of the earthenware and brick fragments was found during the 15th-18th Buddhist century (David J. Welch and Judith R.Mcneil 1989 :35-37)

As for the results of the excavation of the ancient site of Wat No. 9, it was found that the building was polished brick. The base of the building is a square base. The rest of the base was made into a cutting board. Received with a row of square beads and base pad. The top is built of a brick wall. There are stairs leading to the east and west courtyards. The architectural style is similar to the archaeological site of Ban Ja Leh No. 3, found artifacts from excavation such as fragments of pottery. Stucco sculpture of elephants, beads, etc.

In addition, many large archaeological mounds were found in the area of ​​the ancient city of the temple that have not yet been studied, such as The ancient group of Wat Ban Temple No. 15, which has a mound size 69x70 meters wide and 4.80 meters high, is the largest archaeological site of Yarang City. The ancient city of Ban Wat is considered to be a city with many ancient hills and a complex of ancient Yarang communities.

Summarize the importance of Ban Wat archaeological site It is assumed to be the first religious center of Yarang community and possibly the site of the city's first community during the 12th Buddhist century onwards and flourished during the 14th-15th Buddhist centuries. due to Buddhism Demarcation with ditches Town planning is complicated. Areas may be divided for each activity, such as ritual grounds, ponds, religious sites such as stupa, etc. From the excavation of the archaeological site of Ban Wat No. 9, it was found that the stupa was similar to Ban Jale's stupa number 3, so it was assumed to be of a contemporary age.