Wat Meunna, Luang Prabang

The sim of Wat Meunna.

Wat Meunna, whose name is also written as Wat Meun Na and Vat Mounena Somphouaram is a monastery in the old Laotian town of Luang Prabang. It got its name from meun, a unit of weight which is equal to about 12 kilos. So, Wat Meunna is known as the "Monastery of Ten Thousand Rice Fields". This is the amount of rice given by each villager for its construction in 1533, during the reign of King Photthisarat (1520-48). I explored it by tuk tuk while documenting the heritage sites in Luang Prabang.

The sim of Wat Meunna has a three-tiered roof topped with a dok so faa of nine parasols. On each side is a peristyle supported by five rectangular columns. Wat Meunna was restored in 1920, during which time two lateral galleries were added to the sim.

This side chapel is used to store Buddha images. In front of it is the statue of Mae Toranee, the earth goddess.

Monks' living quarters.

Side view of the sim.

The gable showing Erawan, the mount of Indra.

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