Gold Textile Museum

This community of weavers belong to the ethnic group known as Thai Phuan, whose ancestors migrated here from Laos over a century ago. They have been avidly involved in the textile trade since then, and have developed their own distinctive designs, so it’s a great spot to shop for a striking shirt or jacket at the shop in front of the museum.

The museum is right beside Highway 101 at the north end of Si Satchanalai, so is easy to find. Besides the Ancient Textile Museum which displays some intricately woven textiles, some glittering with gold thread, there’s an area of traditional buildings out back where you can see an amazing array of household implements, some over 100 years old, as well as some ingenious fish and frog traps. There are also some old carts with huge wooden wheels, and if you’re lucky you might see someone weaving painstakingly at the looms under the stilted houses. The entire compound is extremely photogenic, and there’s no entrance fee.

Among the items woven here, traditional brocaded skirts are especially well done. The most traditional skirts (called pah sin deen jok) are usually striped, while the men’s sarong-like variety usually bears plaids. Both can be purchased directly from Sathorn’s Shop in front of the museum, and they make excellent souvenirs of this rural Thai outpost.