Dvaravati hoard found
Construction work in Thailand uncovered a Dvaravati‑period hoard (6th–11th centuries CE) comprising 33 gold and silver objects — rings, earrings and thin 'Buddha sheets' — found near a reclining statue and likely deposited as sacred offerings (x.com). The discovery was reported on social channels as a religious deposit tied to a nearby statue (x.com).
Workers trying to control moisture beneath a reclining Buddha in northeastern Thailand instead uncovered a cache of 33 Dvaravati-period metal objects buried about 1.3 meters underground. (artnews.com) The find came from Wat Dhammachak Semaram in Sung Noen district, Nakhon Ratchasima, during conservation work in April 2025 near one of Thailand’s oldest reclining Buddha statues. Archaeologists said the earthenware container held gold rings, silver earrings, and bronze ornaments. (world.thaipbs.or.th) A second excavation on April 30 turned up the most detailed pieces: an 8-by-12.5 centimeter gold repoussé plaque showing a seated Buddha in vitarka mudra, or a teaching gesture, and a lead-tin plaque with a standing Buddha flanked by attendants. A compact mass of soil with three thin metal sheets was found behind the statue’s head. (world.thaipbs.or.th) Dvaravati refers to a network of early Buddhist polities that flourished in parts of what is now Thailand from roughly the 6th to the 11th centuries. The Fine Arts Department’s Dvaravati center says archaeologists have identified about 106 Dvaravati sites, with around 70 in central Thailand. (finearts.go.th) That geography is part of why the Sung Noen discovery stands out. Thai PBS World reported that one spiral-shaped silver earring resembles finds from early Buddhist sites in Ranong and Surat Thani, suggesting links that reached well beyond one temple compound. (world.thaipbs.or.th) The reclining Buddha itself is central to the story. Archaeology magazine, citing Thailand’s Fine Arts Department, said the sandstone image at Wat Dhammachak Semaram is about 43 feet long and is regarded as the oldest reclining Buddha statue in Thailand. (archaeology.org) Archaeologists think the objects were not everyday losses but ritual deposits. ARTnews reported that the metal sheets found behind the Buddha’s head may have been sacred offerings, and the placement of the hoard beneath and around the statue points to deliberate burial. (artnews.com) The imagery also helps date the cache. The gold plaque resembles a Buddha plaque from Wat Phra Prathon Chedi in Nakhon Pathom that is now in the Bangkok National Museum, linking the Sung Noen objects to known Dvaravati artistic traditions. (artnews.com) Thailand’s Fine Arts Department has sent the artifacts to Phimai National Museum for conservation and study. For now, a drainage project at an old temple has added fresh evidence that Wat Dhammachak Semaram was a religious center more than 1,300 years ago. (artnews.com)
