The Ancient Town of Si Thep and its Associated Dvaravati Monuments

The Ancient Town of Si Thep and its Associated Dvaravati Monuments is a UNESCO World Heritage property in Phetchabun Province, inscribed in 2023. UNESCO defines the serial property through three components: the moated Inner and Outer Town of Si Thep, the massive Khao Klang Nok monument and the Khao Thamorrat Cave ancient monument.

Together they document the Dvaravati cultural world of roughly the sixth to tenth centuries CE and show the interaction of Buddhist and Hindu religious traditions with artistic influences from India that were adapted locally into the distinctive Si Thep school. UNESCO notes more than one hundred significant monastery sites and identifies Khao Thamorrat as a unique Mahayana Buddhist cave monastery containing important Dvaravati sculpture.

The property is therefore included as sacred heritage rather than as a single living temple. Archaeology, art history and the surviving sacred landscape provide the evidence for its religious significance; later legends are not needed to interpret the site. Visitors should understand that the World Heritage designation covers a group of related archaeological places, not one monument.

Conservation rules, protected zones and access arrangements should be followed, especially at fragile ruins and cave contexts where physical contact can damage irreplaceable material.