Overview of Wat Xiengthong

It was built in 1560 by King Setthathirath and was under royal patronage during the Kingdom of Laos. Like the royal palace, the wat was placed near the mekong. In 1880, the Tripitaka library was added and then the drum tower in 1961. This temple, along with Wat Suwannaphumaham, was spared by any damage during the sacking of the city in 1887. This was because the Black Flag Haw leader, Deo Van Tri, had studied here as a monk in his early life, and used it as his headquarters during the sacking of Luang Phrabang. On one side of the sim, there are several small halls and stupas that contain Buddha images of the period. There is a reclining Buddha sanctuary, which contains a especially rare reclining Buddha that dates from the construction of the temple. In 1931, the image was taken to Paris and displayed at the Paris Exhibition and was kept in Vientiane until 1964, where it returned to Luang Phrabang. In the near compund's eastern gate stands the royal funerary carriage house, where it houses the funeral carriage, which stands 12 meters high and there are various urns for the members of the royal family.