Thanks to one man's mission and generosity, there is a green refuge in Bangkok where one can partake in sensual indulgence and the calmness of a bygone era. Dedicated to the preservation of Thailand's cultural patrimony, the three acre Prasart Museum garden is now being acclaimed as one of the most outstanding gardens in Thailand for its imaginative design and varied collection of carefully selected plants and decorations.

Long before Prasart Vongsakul became a land developer in Bangkok, he developed a love for art. It began with a childhood purchase of a small vase at a weekend market. Now, about 45 years later, he has fulfilled a dream by opening the Prasart Museum with a fine collection of Asian and European ceramics, sculpture and paintings (particularly notable are the Thai Bencharong bowls). Flanked by idyllic gardens, the museum is a haven from the congestion and pollution of Bangkok.

Prasart Museum and Gardens has been 18 years in the making and is still unfinished according to former businessman Prasart who sold everything he had to fulfill his vision.

To house and display his vast collection of Thai artifacts, Prasart, who has been collecting since he was twelve years old, built various structures in his property. A small Buddhist chapel, a classic Thai house modeled after one in the compound of the Bangkok's National Museum, an all teakwood library set above a pond, and a European style building evoking those that became popular in Thailand during the late 19th century. Around these examples of Thailand's religious and domestic architecture has been created a remarkable garden, combining both traditional and contemporary concepts of landscape design.

"We want to keep our culture for younger generation to study. It makes me sad that so much has gone to Europe over the last 40 years and I feel it is necessary to protect what we have so I decided to make this foundation," explains Prasart.

A devout Buddhist, he is ever mindful of transient reality. "When I die, I cannot take any belongings with me, so everything should be for my country. I have no children to carry on the property business so I have decided to devout the rest of my life in tending to the gardens and improving the museum. I am thankful that I have a strong team of twenty helpers who are sensitive to the needs of the museum and particularly the garden which can never be finished."

Adding considerably to the atmosphere of the garden are items from Prasart's collection. These include a number of handsome old water jars, some particularly large ones that date from the Sukhothai period and other Chinese designs that are planted with water lilies, woodcarvings from northern Thailand, and an assortment of interesting Chinese stone figures, both animal and human. These stone figures became a popular feature of Thai temple and palace gardens in the 19th century, when quantities of these ballast came to Thailand on ships returning from rice trade.

Above, the fountain breaks the languid silence of the garden. Beyond is the all teak library overlooking a lily pond. Such libraries were traditionally built over water to protect religious manuscript from white ants. A Chinese stone figure guards the entrance.

On the right, the three-tiered roof of the Northern style Thai building contains the museum. The garden features numerous shrubs clipped into formal shapes which are characteristic of traditional Thai temple and palace gardens patterned from Chinese models.