At the museum there are eight Royal Barges. These boats a reserved for auspicious ceremonies and state occasions like the very rare Royal Barge Procession, and have only made an appearance on the water 16 times in the last 65 years.
Each is carved from huge pieces of teak, their prows engraved with mythical creatures, gilded in gold and intricately decorated with tiny shimmering pieces of glass. Rowed by up to 50 specially trained oarsmen, the boats leave their dry dock at festival times and important state occasions.
The largest and most important vessel named ‘Suphannahonse’ is 46 meters long and needs 50 oarsmen and 14 crew members.
The barges were often damaged or partly destroyed by bombings or fire. They were reconstructed by the King’s order in 1950s and participated in 2500 anniversary of Buddhism.
We came by foot from Phra Pin Klao Bridge #12 – it’sa 10-15mins walk via small very poor streets following the signs. Easy to find, but unpleasant to walk.
Another way – is by long-tail private boat for 1000-1500 baht.
Entry fee is a 100 baht plus another 100 baht if you want to take photos or 200 baht for videos.