PRACHUAP KHIRI KHAN, Thailand – Deputy Prime Minister Suphajee Suthumpun and Natural Resources and Environment Minister Suchart Chomklin attended a sacred ceremony at Kui Buri National Park in Prachuap Khiri Khan province on August 20 for the cutting of fragrant sandalwood for the Royal Funeral of Her Royal Highness Princess Bajrakitiyabha Narendiradebyavati Kromluangrajasarinisiribajra Mahavajrarajadhita. Air Chief Marshal Somkid Sukbang, lord chamberlain to Her Royal Highness, presided over the traditional rites. The Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation selected 20 fragrant sandalwood trees that had died naturally while standing in the park, in keeping with royal tradition.
The ceremony included the consecration of the first tree and a golden axe before ACM Somkid made the first ceremonial cut. Suchart reported that no living trees would be felled for the ceremony. Kui Buri National Park is a key natural source of fragrant sandalwood (Mansonia gagei). The selected trees are more than a century old and prized for their natural fragrance. The department will plant 10 young trees for each one used, for a total of 200 replacements. The wood will be processed with assistance from royal volunteer teams and delivered to the Fine Arts Department’s Office of Traditional Arts in Nakhon Pathom. Fragrant sandalwood has been used for centuries in royal cremation ceremonies for Thai monarchs and senior members of the royal family.
