Rare Buddhist Bell Cast in 1943 Unveiled
A rare Buddhist bell cast in 1943 by Thailand's 12th Supreme Patriarch was the last bell made using an original mold created by a royal goldsmith, before the Patriarch's death the following year.
Somdet Phra Ariyavongsagatayana, the 12th Supreme Patriarch of Bangkok, was renowned as a master craftsman in creating sacred Buddhist bells in Thailand. The Chiang Tung bell of 1943 represents the final bell cast during his lifetime and the last occasion the original large mold was used in production.
The Supreme Patriarch primarily employed a large mold created by Phraya Suphakorn Bannasat, a former royal goldsmith and skilled artisan from the reign of King Rama VI. This mold was crafted by coating the original bell with lead, ensuring the replica matched the original in precise proportions.
In 1943, Khun Ying Suphakorn Bannasat, widow of Phraya Suphakorn Bannasat, presented the lead mold to the Supreme Patriarch. That same year, he commissioned the casting of a large bell using this mold.
The bell was created using metal from various sources including fragments from earlier bell castings stored at the Patriarch's residence, combined with metal from a 1939 bell casting and gold sheets inscribed with 108 sacred mantras and 14 phonetic elements, supplemented with considerable gold plate remaining from an Indochinese Buddha statue cast in 1941.
The metal mixture produces a golden color that mellows to brown over time, with some bells exhibiting a greenish patina called "sai phai" due to the aged bell metal. Others display lighter or reddish-brown hues.
A total of 108 Chiang Tung bells were cast. The Supreme Patriarch distributed them to Department of Religion officials traveling to Chiang Tung and approximately 30 close disciples. The Supreme Patriarch passed away on November 26, 1944, making the Chiang Tung bell his final creation.
