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Thailand: The Ratana Chedi, Wat Chama Thewi, Lamphun

Wat Chamathewi (Chama Thewi or Chamadevi) or Wat Kukut (Temple of the Broken Reliquary) as it is also known, was built at some point in the 8th or 9th century. It contains two authentic Mon chedi. The first and larger of these is the Mahapon Chedi or ‘Great Victory Stupa’, also known as Chedi Suwanna Chang Kot or ‘Heavenly Stupa with a Magnificent Summit’, a tall structure of laterite and stucco set on a square laterite foundation. Nearby there is another chedi of smaller proportions but almost equal style. This structure, called the Ratana Chedi, is said to contain the ashes of the great queen Chamathewi herself.

Lamphun was the capital of the small but culturally rich Mon Kingdom of Haripunchai from about 750 AD to the time of its conquest by King Mangrai (the founder of Chiang Mai) in 1281.