Some Teaching of Somdej Wat Ket Chai Yoh from Youtube

Sharing recent teaching learned from youtube. For convenience of collectors that don't understand Thai.

Notes taken purely for sharing purpose. Although I agree with most of the points. But authenticating a somdej is not as simple as that. Also different mold/pim has slightly different characteristic. You really have to see and touch many many real pieces before you got a hang of it. Looking at all the marks, signs are just 1 aspect of it. You still have to look at the materials, aging factors etc. It is really an art. :) After you own one piece, you will want another piece. Price is high, but is all worth it. Don't believe me, ask those that own a real piece.

In summary:

Stories behind the name of the temple

-        Ket comes from the nickname of the temple master

-        After that the name was changed to Chai Yo

-        Then combined to Ket Chai Yo

King Rama the 5^th era renamed the temple with the full name.

Som Dej Wat Ket Chai Yo: How to see whether it is authentic:

1.     The right corner of the frame, it has to make a sharp 90 degree angle, but the left corner does not.

2.     A slight depression area at the corner

3.     Looking sideway, not all the  surface is flat or on the same level

4.     The ears are higher than the face. The shapes of the ears at the two sides are not the same, the right is straighter while the left is curvier

5.     The face has to be round like a ball

6.     The shoulders are very pointy- called Intanu. The right shoulder is slightly higher than the left shoulder.

7.     The arm shapes how it bends, the right arm goes smoothly- only 3 break points. The fake ones are smooth without any break points

8.     The breast looks almost like an elephant’s head/ a teeth

9.     The base lines:

a.     Second base looks like a boat

b.     5^th & 6^th base, the line is not flat throughout like the fake ones. Deeper at the side and gentler in the middles.

10.  Sloping from high to low- deepest in the middle area

11.  Below the frame, there is a thin outline

12.  At the arch frame, not flat throughout, more depression in the middle

13.  Looking sideway, the frame surface are not flat, tapers down at the edge

14.  Made from a very thin mold. As such, the surface does not have very deep pressed lines.

Some Observation after leaving amulets Collection for a while

Been inactive for a while like 7-8 months due to my work commitment and other changes in my life..Didn't blog at all and today, came back to Singapore and caught up with friends and collectors..

Thai amulet market seems bearish for a while..especially for LPT prices. it is pretty good to see some real deal going on now. Great time to invest in one if you have not own a 2497, 2505 or other Ajarn Tim LPT.

On the other hand, i am happy to see that LP Moon , Wat Baan Jaan is gaining traction in Thai and Singapore alike. Last time, 10 pieces of amulets in market, i see many LP Toh or LP Tim amulet. Now out of 10, i can see 1-2  amulets from LP Moon. Not many Pu Tim or Pu Toh pieces. It is getting really popular and the price has also skyrocketed. I started LP Moon few years back when Singapore is not so popular yet. I recommended to my friends and blog readers Pidta Ruay Thun zai. And that it has positive effect on my career and wealth. This recommendation still hold till now. Just that, now the price has gone up so much, it is no longer affordable for many novice collectors.  Everything made in year 2543, Roop loh, rein, pidta all at very high price especially nur lek num phi. If you happen to have 1, keep it. You are lucky!

Do share you experience if you own a LP Moon amulet.

2505 Wat Changhai LP Thuat Pinaikum

Luang Por Thuat  Roon Pinaikum by Ajarn Tim 

Tummaro, Master of Wat Chang Hai

1 month before Ajarn Tim’s death at Siriraj Hospital, he wrote a will to describe his last words at Wat Eiam Woranuch.

Details of Ajarn Tim’s will:

Kru Wisai Sopol, 57 years old. Master of Wat Raj Burana Changhai, Pai Rai, Kok Poh, Pattani helped in writing Ajarn Tim’s will. The content is as follows:

1.     Pra Kru Patrakorn Kowit, Head of Na Pradu district Wat Na Pradu

2.     Pra Kru Manoon Samanakarn, Head of Tung Pla, Wat Palanupap

3.     Pra Sopol Tummakul, Wat Napradu

4.     Pra Kru Palud Nong Tumputoh, Master of Wat Sai Kao

5.     Pra Kru Bai Di Ka Kao, Wat Baan Di, Mueng, Pattani

The above 5 persons will be managing the inheritance:

1. Be responsible for the completion of Chedi (construction in progress) according to the construction plans

2. Gather funds from the donation to support the construction.

3. Pay all the debts for cost of construction materials, cost of making LP Thuat and making rings.

4. From my personal money, use 20,000 Baht only to settle the cremation. Use 50,000 Baht for building a wall surrounding Wat Na Pradu. Use the rest to set up a foundation or deposit in a bank in order to accumulate the interest money for future spending on items that benefits Buddhism and fellow Buddhists.

5. All cash deposited in the bank can be withdrawn for the Chedi construction or for paying debts.

6. Pra Luang Por nuen Wad was blessed during a ceremony on 19 May 2505 BC. Out of 2,000 Pra Nuen Wan, 200 were given to Pra Kru Ta Won Kul, Wat Eiam Woranuch. The rest to be given to those who make donation for building the temple’s wall and construction of the school of Pra Prariyat Tum, Wat Na Pradu. This is because Luang Por Tuad had been staying in this Wat and studied at this school since young.

7. Money from Luang Por Tuad’s friends were given to support the cremation and the funeral. Please return this money if not used.

8. Check and make a list of all the inheritance in the temple and my resting quarter to be passed on to the next master of the temple.

9. If any Laung Por Tuad Nuen Wan found in the my resting quarter, may give them to those that attended to me during my illness. Also, put some at Chedi as per agreement with Pra Kru Palud Nong.

10. Do not rent out any Pra Luang Por Tuad or any Luang Por’s ring. Please give them to those who donate for Chedi construction. Make a list to keep track of the donators as well

Point no. 6 above largely reveals the faithfulness of Ajarn towards Buddhism. This fact has made Pra LP Thuat, Roon Pinankum (of which ceremony was conducted by Ajarn Tim in 2505 B.C.) very popular till these days.

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Somdej Nai Phao Phim Hua Bai Sri (Wat Inn, 2495)

Sharing an excellent condition piece of somdej Nai phao, 2495, Wat Inn.

This is the most expensive and sough after pim for Somdej Phao and has mixed with great amount of Somdej WRK old powder. I highly recommend this for newbies or anyone that likes somdej.

I only recommend 2 phims for this batch. Phim Ork Ruang Hua bai sri or the other phim with protruded chest.

Other details of this amulet, please refer to previous post. I have blogged about this in detail many years ago when i started blogging.

Many years ago, a thai friend taught me to collect amulet with standard material and standard phim to learn and even if it costs a little more. This principal i follow till now. This amulet is one such example.

 

 

LP Moon Pidta Ruay Thun Zai

One of the Pidta I loved the most if Pidta Ruay Thun Zai. Many of my friends know i don't wear pidta. I never found pidta effective, at least that is my personal feeling and i have tried many including those made by LP Toh, LP Tim. I have not reach LP Iam, LP Kiew, LP Klan standard yet. So, i have never try those. But LP Toh one and LP Time one, i have worn before and i got no positive feeling at all. In fact, i started to get hot tempered easily and my relationship with family becomes tense. So, i stop and never wear pidta for a long time. Until last year, i got convince by a thai collector to try LP Moon Pidta and this changed my view altogether. I have described that in my previous post, so, i am not repeating again.

Pidta Ruay Thun Zhai (Money abundance, millionaire) was made in 2543. Very new in fact. It has received raved reviews all over Thailand. It was made with many different type of materials and made in very small quantity. So, before i come to US, i invested in the most expensive material , nur Lek Num Pi. This costs me >150k THB. Considering other material is only costing 20k - 45k THB. But i believe it will cost even more few years down the road. Many of my friends have collected the entry level material and have good reviews too.

Other info:
Roon: 1st batch, Sao ha

Year made: Sao ha ceremony was conducted at Pha Nong Lom on 8th April 2543 B.E
Quantity made: 109 pieces
Remarks: First time in 132 years, it was made in ceremony blessing of Sao ha lasted for 5 days by 5 monks of Luang pu with age of more than 100 years old on Saturday the 5th waxing moon in 5th months and 5th year (Dragon year 2543 B.E)

Monks Participated
- LP Moon, master of ceremony
- LP Kong , 102 years old , Wat Sra Montol
- LP Lamai, Wat Payen Phechabu
- Kruba Tieng Tum, Wenruwan, Srisaket
- LP Sruang, Baan Sai Loom

2497 vs 2505 LP Thuat Nur Wahn, Ajarn Tim (Wat Changhai) - Part 2

LP Thuat of 2497 B.C. version is said to be the harder one to differentiate from other kinds, because:

• LP Thuat was made of earth and wahn. The one that has higher component of earth looks more black while the one with more wahn looks more brown and grey. This amulet with the black tone has very fine texture, for example Pim Kammakarn. Since the amulet was not mixed with fixed components, this produced the outcome of different tones. Need an expert to examine and differentiate the amulet.
• The way amulet was kept. When the amulet faces heat and humidity, the condition may change- the texture becomes more tight or loose.

The way to examine LP Thuat of 2497 B.C.needs to have a lot of understanding of which kind of mold and the colour pigments of the amulet.

LP Thuat of 2505 B.C.version (Phi nai khum commonly known as) is more intricate than the 2497 B.C. version since more time taken to produce and fewer number produced. (2497 B.C has 64,000 whereas 2505 B.C. has 20,000 pieces)

• Pim Yai with Kamakarn face is similar to Pim Kamakarn of 2497 B.C. version but smaller. It is said that they might use the same mold.
• Pim Yai with Kamakarn face (but made of new mold). The look is slightly different from first one. It is said that this becomes the original mold for Pim Yai wat Sai Kow (Ajarn Nong)
• Pim Pra Rod may look similar to Pim Pra Rod Kammakarn 2497 but there are some difference. Phim nai khum version, 2505 B.C. has the same tone as Pim Kamakarn. As such, the tone is black with red, black and white pigments, similar to 2497 B.C. version. At the back, there are parts with gold colour mineral, which is unique to this amulet (2497 B.C. amulet may have this characteristic, but not many)

The amulet of Phim nai khum version, 2505 B.C. was produced in smaller quantity than the amulet of the same kind that has the same golden mineral at the back of the amulet. Therefore, Phra LP Thuat, , Phim nai khum 2505 B.C. version is more suitable to be collected than 2497 B.C. version in my opinion.

The amulet made in 2505 B.C. is usually big, worth collecting, although is rare, especially Phim Nai Khum Pim Pra Rod, compared to 2497 B.C. version, which is more common but more expensive.

In summary, for people that cannot afford 2497, or have better far sight, should study 2505. It is far more valuable and has great potential to increase prices. Anyway, their price difference is just 10-15% difference in market now. A top grade 2505 phim nai khum costs the same as a good grade 2497.

What I shared here are 2 very good condition 2505 LP Thuat Phi Nai Kum. One is Pim Yai with kamakarn face and same mold of 2497 pim kamakarn. The other one is new mold. Face and body looks slightly different if you look carefully.  Both are in excellent condition and have won in multiple competitions organized by Samakorm. 

2497 vs 2505 LP Thuat Nur Wahn, Ajarn Tim (Wat Changhai) - Part 1

Many people asked me about LP Thuat (nur wahn) of 2497 and 2505 origin. What is the difference, how many type , material composition, how to differentiate etc.

I would like to pen down what i know and my advice as well.

For 2497, it was well know for the fact that it was the first LP Thuat image. Ajarn Tim the then abbot of Wat Changhai, get "authorized" by LP Thuat to make this images to bless the devotees. It was made of mixture of both "earth" and "herbs". The colour of the amulets depends on material composition and mixture. The more "earth" it is the darker it became and the more herbs it has, the amulet appears brownish or greyish.

Almost all monk stayed near Wat Changhai participated in the making of LP Thuat. The younger monks helped to make materials into "nur" whereas the older/ more senior monks helped to pray/chant. Many special steps were needed to create herbal amulet by hand. Each Nur is unique due to different percentage of ingredients, different time taken to mix/press into mold and dry time too. Nur was sculpted into hundreds of "ball" and hand-pressed them into mold and let it dry naturally. The one that are left to be pressed later, was mostly dried off and cracked easily.  Nur that was not "elastic" enough, resulted in crack. Nur that was too liquid will not produce sharp edges and accurate features. The final piece looks all different because of all these factors despite being mixed with the same ingredient. That is the reason why it is hard to find 2 identical pieces and it is so difficult to authenticate a 2497 even for expert in LPT.

So, to authenticate, please make sure you check the form, the ingredient, greasiness, dryness of materials. If possible, scrap a bit and go through spectrometric analysis to see exact composition and age of the materials. :)

It is that difficult. Strangely, some 2497 are easier to be authenticated than others. And those easier to be authenticated, are usually those that are in bad form. Super dry and the right composition visibly seen. They are cheaper too (due to its bad condition or worn out condition) but safer in my opinion.

Phra Somdej Nur Phong Yant Vilas - LP Daeng (Wat Khao Ban Dai-it) - Yellow

Sharing a good piece of somdej very popular for danger/accident avoidance.

This was made by LP Daeng (widely known as the bullet-proof monk). His 2502 coin is highly priced and popular among collectors including Hong kong movie stars. Some people said that both Jacky Chan and Andy Lau were seen wearing this coin whenever performing special stunt. Can't verify that since i don't know them personally :).

For somdej, i would say this is good for both wearing and for just collection. The material used for the making is already worth every penny of it and much more. Back then, officer Phra Song Jerm Porm offered to LP Daeng to make this batch. He spent 20 years collect all the materials and mixed them. The ceremony was conducted in 250 temples and attended by over 5000 monks from 2489 - 2509 B.C. The process of pressing the mixed materials into molds was completed around 2511. LP Daeng then conducted the ceremony for another 3 years (2511-2513 B.C.)

Some of the materials used for the making of this somdej:

1. Ground broken amulets of Somdej wat rakhang, BKP, Wat In, LP Prink amulets.

2. Phong Kru Wat Ngern Klong Toey
3. Phong Kru Wat Sam Pluem
4. Phong Phra LP Thuat of Wat changhau, Pattani
5. Phong LP Tien, Wat Bod, Patthum Thani
6. Holy Soil (Nur din) from 4 important buddhist places in India (Buddha Birth, Enlightenment, Sermon and Death)

7. The great 5 holy powder of itijay powder, maharaj powder, budhakhom powder, Padhamong powder, Tri-Nisinghae powder.

8. Bronze dust of casting Buddha from many important temples: Wat Palelai, Wat Bovorn, Wat Makutkasart, Wat Bodhi, Wat Phra Singh etc

9. Holy Soil from 9 good name areas: Chai nat, Chai badal, Phichai, Denchai, Mahachai, Chaiya, Chaiyaphum, Hariphuchai, Nakhonchaisri (Chai : Victory)

10. Holy water and holy candle wax from 109 temples
......

So, with so much "Ho-liao" in it, what's more to ask? Amazingly, the price of this somdej is still very affordable after so many years. 

What shared below is normal phim, yellow color. Deep Yant, clear feature. Standard material. Easy to see. No cert though. Submitted to competition and accepted before. But condition not good enough to win in competition. But good enough for wearing. Got to be careful though. Lots of fake in the market.