Thailand Prepares for a King’s $90 Million Cremation Ceremony
Capping a year of national mourning, Thailand will cremate its celebrated King Bhumibol Adulyadej on Thursday evening, in a $90 million ceremony that symbolizes both the bountiful devotion of his subjects and the earthly abundance of what many consider the world’s wealthiest monarchy.
After 10 months of construction, a 164-foot-high royal pyre and pavilion — decorated with nine gilded spires, a great white umbrella and statuary of the king’s favorite pet dogs — awaits the funerary urn and coffin in which the ninth monarch of the Chakri dynasty has been placed.
At the time of his death at age 88 on Oct. 13, 2016, King Bhumibol, also known as Rama IX, was the world’s longest-reigning royal — and one of the most revered. During his seven decades on the throne, he helped guide a nation prone to chronic coup-making and spasms of political...