Thought to be Chiang Mai’s oldest wat, it was built around 1296 by King Mengrai, the founder of Chiang Mai, on the spot where he first camped. Like many of the wats in Chiang Mai, this complex reflects many architectural styles. Some of the structures and artworks are pure Lanna. Others show influences from as far away as Sri Lanka, like the typical row of elephant supports around the small stupa behind the viharn. Wat Chiang Man is most famous for its two Buddhas: Phra Sae Tang Khamani (a miniature crystal image also known as the White Emerald Buddha) and the marble Phra Sila Buddha, believed to have been carved in Sri Lanka over 1000 years ago. Unfortunately, the small viharn that safeguards these religious sculptures (to the right as you enter) is almost always closed.