On Wednesday, 14 October 2010, I lead a group of 17 Mum's from NIST on a walking tour of the Ban Krua Silk Weavers.
The Ban Krua community is made up of Chams, Muslims from Kampong Cham province in Cambodia. The Chams in the Ban Krua community are as old as Bangkok itself, having arrived in Thailand in the reign of King Rama I. They fought on the side of Siam during the Burmese-Siamese wars and for their loyal service they were granted land outside the old city. The site is in present day Ratchathewi district just north of the National Stadium skytrain station.
Silk weaving was a traditional craft of the Chams and they brought these skills with them to Ban Krua. When Jim Thompson started taking an interest in Thai silk in the late 1940s, he visited Ban Krua Community and helped them improve their designs and patterns. He also introduced them to chemical dyes. He convinced them to produce a sample batch of silks which he took to New York. The silks hit Vogue magazine and from then on Jim Thompson silk took off.
There were a group of eight Cham families who produced the silk for his Thai silk company. We visited Khun Niphon's, who was a boy when Thompson first came to Ban Krua and is the only descendant from the original weavers. Khun Niphon allowed us to walk around his small workshop to see the weaving looms in operation. We were also lucky enough so see the dying process and to purchase some of the beautiful silk destined for the 5 Star Hotels in Bangkok and to London.
We also walked around the community and saw the local fire station, mosque and the locals at work before we crossed the khlong and had lunch at Jim Thompson's house.
All in all a very good tour.
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