The 11th Thailand International Kite Festival ( Colouring the Sky )

Date: 
Sat, 2010-03-13 10:00 - Sun, 2010-03-14 21:00
Location: 
Mrigadayavan Palace , Naresuan Camp , Amphoe Cha-am , Phetchaburi

 

 

 

 

 

 
Kite flying is a world popular sport that has evolved over the decades resulting in changes into modernized patterns and materials. Nowadays, the features of a kite has a beautifully bigger structure and adopted modern technology in its production, which brings in a variety of forms and structures and methods of flying; as such, it creates a spectacle to the audience. It is believed that the invention of kite dates back to 400 B.C. with the purpose of pleasure and certain usefulness. From an academic chronicle, it was found that a Chinese engineer named Kungshu Pan (Lu Ban) built a wooden bird, which could fly in the sky for 3 days; therefore, it was assumed as the world’s first kite.

In Thailand, kite flying has been long popular since the Sukhothai and Ayutthaya periods among the royalty as well as ordinary people. However, the Royal Household’s law forbade that no one could fly a kite over the palace; otherwise, punishment by law would be enforced. The Chula-Pakpao kites were created in the Ayutthaya period and the competition had been held until the Rattanakhosin period. King Rama ll was fond of Chula kite fighting with the Pakpao kite of his brother. Westerners compared the Chula kite as a male and Pakpao kite as a female, which was similar to the Thai social value in that period that males dominated female. Kite flying was also the most popular sport in king Rama IV, kite flying at Sanam Luang inside the Dusit Palace, and had a kite flying competition held at Dusit Palace in 1856, where he presided over himself. In the reign of King Rama VI, kite flying was restored as a sport and Phraya Phirom PhaKdi organized a kite flying competition at Sanam Luang. After World was II, the Siam Sport Club held an annual kite flying competition. 

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