The Giant Swing is 88 feet tall and overlooks Wat Suthat and additional surrounding buildings. It was originally constructed in 1784 under the guidance of King Rama I. For centuries it was used by young Thai men as a “slingshot to heaven,” and it was an integral element in annual swing ceremonies that symbolically reenacted components of Hindu origin tales. Teams of Thai men would wear elaborate headdresses and compete against one another by launching themselves into the air, from where they would have to use their teeth to catch a bag of coins tied to the top of a pole 82 feet or higher above ground.
Bamrung Muang Road, Phra Nakhon, 10200 Bangkok, Thailand, Phone: +66-8-86-16-52-97