The Curse Of Wang Petchabun (Rajprasong)

[Xangsamhua]

My wife is reading a book called "The Curse of Wang Petchabun", about the Petchabun Palace (Front Palace) that occupied the Rajprasong site before being taken up, in order, by Thai Daimaru, World Trade Center and Central World. In Thai, the book is อาถรรพ์วังเพ็ขชบูรณ.

The theme of the book is the curse placed by a previous occupant, a prince who loved the palace dearly, on any commercial/retail operation that might be taken up on that site in the future. I think the said prince and the curse dates back to Rama V's time. Prior to the palace being razed and the site devoted to retail, it served as a museum and cultural centre.

Anyway, in the book, the author states that at one stage Thai Daimaru was located (relocated?) to a site opposite the present Central World site. The author also states that Daimaru competed successfully with Central Rajprasong. But my early memories of the Rajprasong area had Daimaru on the present Central World site and I don't have any memory of a Central Rajprasong. I don't know when Central Chitlom was built, but I expect it could have been seen as a competitor with Daimaru, even though they were some distance apart.

I'm sure Daimaru was where Central World is now and it joined the old Gaysorn Arcade, which contained Manit Jumsai's bookshop, the Chartered Bank, various small shops and restaurants, and Whimpey's hamburger bar, about where Isetan is now. Can any "old hands" or Thai readers of TV enlighten me?

[thepanom]

Thai daimaru was opposite world trade center, but world trade center was build much later

[Xangsamhua]

Thai daimaru was opposite world trade center, but world trade center was build much later

Thank you. Yes, it seems that Daimaru was on the present Big C site. I can't quite come to grips with my failure of memory, because I was 100% certain until learning otherwise that it was on the opposite side. My last visit to Daimaru was in late 1975, but I had been there many times until then.

Lesson: As you get older, don't put too much trust in your memory.

[PIBkk]

Thai Daimaru originally was located at the site of the World Trade Center. This was known as the "Old Thai Daimaru". The store was not located right on the main road but set back from the Rajprasong Road. Back then there were a few foreign companies (Opel dealership, airline office, etc) located nearby as well among what was set of bland, hong taew (row house). Just behind the old Daimaru I recall seeing wooded, green area, similar to Sra Pratum Palace now ; I don't know whether this was part of the old Petchboon Palace or not. On the opposite side of the road where, until recently, there used to be the Narai Phan store, now completely razed to the ground. Before it was the Narai Phan store, this was the original site of the first branch of "The Mall"department store. It didn't do well so it was folded and moved to the boondock of Ramkhamhaeng Road. Thai Daimaru also moved across the street close to the Big C Department store. You still can see remnants of the this Thai Daimaru; just look out for the funky, orangey ceramics. After a while, it was shut down and re-surfaced again many years later out on Sri Nakarin Road. I remember that it didn't fare too well neither.

Bangkok contains quite a number of places with much history, but it is utterly sad that few have been preserved or at least documented for future benefits. Ornate palaces have been bought and sold for their spacious land, and their buildings knocked down to make room for concrete monstrosity. Commercial areas and homes of ordinary people seldom escape this similar end.

[Xangsamhua]

Thai Daimaru originally was located at the site of the World Trade Center. This was known as the "Old Thai Daimaru". The store was not located right on the main road but set back from the Rajprasong Road.

Woo hoo!! So it looks like my memory's not as bad as I feared (unless Daimaru moved across the road before my time - 1969). Thank you PIBkk for all that interesting information.

You're so right too that planners and people generally in Bangkok didn't seem to have much feeling for the past and much has been lost. Hopefully that's changing now. It wasn't just Bangkok, of course; the old Singapore was virtually obliterated in the 70s. Perhaps it was mostly unavoidable; the old had to give way to the new.

[bangon04]

Thai Daimaru originally was located at the site of the World Trade Center. This was known as the "Old Thai Daimaru". The store was not located right on the main road but set back from the Rajprasong Road.

Woo hoo!! So it looks like my memory's not as bad as I feared (unless Daimaru moved across the road before my time - 1969). Thank you PIBkk for all that interesting information.

You're so right too that planners and people generally in Bangkok didn't seem to have much feeling for the past and much has been lost. Hopefully that's changing now. It wasn't just Bangkok, of course; the old Singapore was virtually obliterated in the 70s. Perhaps it was mostly unavoidable; the old had to give way to the new.

Hopefully there is a book of old photographs of the area. If not maybe TV members could start one.

[Xangsamhua]

The plot thickens. I'm told that the reason the old Daimaru moved from the Rajprasong corner to the Big C site was that it was damaged by fire. Believers in the Curse would see this as confirming its effectiveness.

The scary Indian sculpture, "The Head", handed over to Central World by the Thai-India Chamber of Commerce on April 30th, 2009, is also regarded by Curse-believers as an evil influence, but I'm not sure why. It rather looked like it was gloating when the building went up and was completely undamaged itself, but maybe I'm getting carried away. (I don't really believe in the effectiveness of curses.)

[bangon04]

Was it a total coincidence that after the 9/11 attacks in New York, the World Trade Center in Bangkok was renamed ?