Celebration of renovated Temple of Dawn set in early 2017

BANGKOK, August 17 (TNA) - A three-year renovation of Bangkok's renowned Temple of Dawn will be completed late this year and a grand celebration for the renovated temple has already been set in early next year. In response to many inquiries on when the renovation at the Temple of Dawn will be completed, Deputy Abbot Phra Sakkaya Puttiyawong told journalists that the three-year work will be completed as schedule. According to the deputy abbot, only about 20-30 per cent of the work has been left for the final touch at the lower part of the stupa. The deputy abbot said the gilded crown on the top of the stupa will be decorated with 1,955 gemstones as the original work, inspected by the Fine Arts Department,and the final work is expected to be finished in October 2016. The renovation work of the Temple of Dawn or Wat Arun started in 2013 with a state budget of more than 150 million baht, while an additional 30 million baht came from public donations for the renovation of the top of the stupa’s spire. (TNA)