Hor Trai
As Ho Trai ( Thai หอไตร ) is called a library building in a Wat , the Buddhist temple in Thailand .
Every Raja Khana (head of part of the monks, see: Kuti (temple) ) has his Hor Trai; if a wat has several Raja Khana, we find a corresponding number of library buildings.
The administration of a Hor Trai is incumbent on the Bannarak , the librarian.
Hor trais can have different sizes and shapes.
The scriptures of the Tripitaka were written on palm leaves for centuries . Since it is difficult to protect the sensitive bundles of palm leaves in the manuscripts from moisture and termites , the buildings are placed on stakes so that the room with the bookcases is about 3 m above the floor. Brick masonry is preferred because of the ants, and the library is sometimes even moved into artificially created ponds.
The individual sheets of holy scripture, about 50 cm long and 4 to 6 cm wide, are perforated so that about 20 to 40 pages can be threaded with a cord. The entire work is pressed together between two teak boards and wrapped in a cloth and stored in special bookcases. These bookcases are mostly artistically designed, with mother-of-pearl inlays or drawings in gold on black lacquer. Particularly successful examples can be admired in the National Museum in Bangkok .
