Wat Sorasak Sukhothai

Wat Sorasak Sukhothai Historical Park

Wat Sorasak Temple

Wat Sorasak temple is located in the interior the northern wall of Sukhothai and near Ta Pha Daeng temple that is to the southwest of this shrine. The Fine Arts Department discovered a stone inscription in 1955 and named it "Wat Sorasak stone inscription". It’s also called inscription No. 49. It is displayed in the Ramkhamhaeng National Museum. On the basis of this stone inscription, it is inferred that Wat Sorasak was founded in 1412. Nai Inthara Sorasak was the author of the stone engraving and the builder of the temple.

Wat Sorasak Sukhothai Historical Park

The Fine Arts Department also discovered pieces of the Buddha image and the remains of elephants’ sculptures.
As per the stone inscription, a Sukhothai governor, Okya Dharmaraja granted a plot of land where Nai Inthara Sorasak constructed a temple to dedicate to the governor. After completion of the temple, an uncle of the Sukhothai governor, Mahathera Dharmmtrailok, was invited to live in this temple. In 1416 Somdet Phra Borommarachathirat II came to Sukhothai with his aunt and mother to perform a religious rite. His aunt lodged at the palace to the west near Wat Sorasak. This story mentioned in the inscription leads to assume that the palace of the Sukhothai was situated to the north of Ta Pha Daeng Shrine and west of Wat Sorasak.
The main attraction is the stupa which is a bell shaped shrine shielded with and installed on a square brick foundation which is ornamented with 24 elephant statues made from bricks and stucco, typical of the Sri Lankan type introduced to Sukhothai.
These types of elephant styled Sri Lankan temples are also in Si Satchanalai andKhamphaeng Phet.
In the 1980's Wat Sorasak was renovated therefore some parts of the stucco have been substituted.