It’s not known by whom or when Wat Som (or, in English, the Temple of the Citrus Fruit) was established, though from the style of its prang it’s probably from the early Ayutthaya period.

It now sits desolate, unvisited by tourists, its information boards and name plate missing, presumed stolen. However, it has some of the finest remaining stucco work on its prang.

Behind the prang are the remains of a hall …

… with a few forlorn fragments of shattered Buddha figures.

There are also the stumps of a few small chedis. However, excavation in the early 90s revealed that the original floor level is about 2 metres below ground, so the chedi-bases are iceberg-like.

The sandy soil was alive with insects. Bright red beetles scurried everywhere, cicadas filled the trees, and the holes from which they had emerged were clear in the sandy soil. Here are a couple of cicadas enjoying themselves on the side of a tree.

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