
Dedicated to the art & culture of Thail&, this volume explores the ancient & various origins of this modern country's identity. The Thai identity is the result of an extraordinary process of integration, clash & selection of different cultural traditions, the expression of the various civilisations which inhabited the same area over time. From the XIII century the Thai civilisation became the great protagonist of the political scene & the author of the country's unification, but it was also the heir of a several-thous&-year-old tradition. It would thereby be misleading to identify the culture of the modern country with the single Thai culture, thus ignoring the importance of the origins & the transformation & synthesis operated by the Thai people in producing the original mixture at the heart of their own culture. From the contacts with the Indian world to the beginning of the first Buddhist Dvaravati civilisation, to the provincial features of the Khmer civilisation & the flourishing of the first reign, the book looks over the fascinating route to modern Thail&, through the most up-to-date historical studies & the reconstruction based on archaeological & artistic testimonies.