Work has started on creating a statue of the man regarded as the founding father of Phuket, Phraya Wichit Songkhram. A photograph from 1849 on which the cast bronze statue will be based is due to be installed on the south corner of the Wichit Sangkharam Temple. The statue, which will be 2.5 metres tall and 1.9 metres wide, will cost 8.7 million Baht to produce. The location for the statue was chosen because of Phraya Wichit Songkhram’s involvement in the development of the area.
Renowned Thai artist Sunti Pichetchaiyakul, who created the famous statue of King Rama IX Bhumibol Adulyadej which is located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA, where King Bhumibol was born, is producing this masterpiece for Phuket.
This monument is being created as a collaboration between Phuket Provincial Office, Phuket City Municipality, Wichit Sangkharam Temple and the people of Phuket who want to pay homage to the man who developed Phuket Town 170 years ago. The statue is due to be completed and installed on 28th February with Government officers and monks present for the formal ceremony.
