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The Chao Mae Tuptim shrine ( th, ศาลเจ้าแม่ทับทิม, , also known as Penis Shrine) is a phallic shrine in

Bangkok Bangkok, officially known in Thai language, Thai as Krung Thep Maha Nakhon and colloquially as Krung Thep, is the capital and most populous city of Thailand. The city occupies in the Chao Phraya River delta in central Thailand and has an estima ...

Thailand Thailand ( ), historically known as Siam () and officially the Kingdom of Thailand, is a country in Southeast Asia, located at the centre of the Indochinese Peninsula, spanning , with a population of almost 70 million. The country is bo ...

, located behind the Mövenpick BDMS Wellness Resort Bangkok near the bank of the

Khlong Saen Saep Khlong Saen Saep (, ) is a canal ''(khlong)'' in central Thailand, connecting the Chao Phraya River to Prachinburi Province and Chachoengsao Province, Chachoengsao. A portion of the canal is used for public transport by an express boat service in ...

. It was created in the first quarter of the 20th century by Thai businessman

Nai Lert Lert Sreshthaputra ( th, เลิศ เศรษฐบุตร), or Nai Lert (, literally "Mr. Lert"), was known as a Thailand’s first and foremost developer, investor as well as preserver of Bangkok’s environment. He was royally bestowed a ...

(1872-1945), who found a spirit house floating in the klong and placed it on the bank of his property. In Thailand, the

phallus A phallus is a penis (especially when erect), an object that resembles a penis, or a mimetic image of an erect penis. In art history a figure with an erect penis is described as ithyphallic. Any object that symbolically—or, more precisel ...

is considered to be a symbol of good luck and also a representative of fertility. The shrine is one of the best examples of intentional

phallic architecture Phallic architecture consciously or unconsciously creates a symbolic representation of the human penis. Buildings intentionally or unintentionally resembling the human penis are a source of amusement to locals and tourists in various places around ...

in the world. The site, which measures roughly , is now "crammed with carved" wooden penis statues, which are said to possess special cosmic powers and endow good fortune and fertility on anybody coming into contact with them. The size of the penis statues, which number well over 100, is said to range "

rom Rom, or ROM may refer to: Biomechanics and medicine * Risk of mortality, a medical classification to estimate the likelihood of death for a patient * Rupture of membranes, a term used during pregnancy to describe a rupture of the amniotic sac * R ...

the size of a cream doughnut to the size of a canoe"; some are huge, some are humorous and painted pink to closely resemble a human phallus. The shrine is named after Chao Mae Tuptim, a pre-Buddhist Southeast Asian tree spirit, who is said to bestow blessings on those who worship her at the shrine. The site attracts women from all across Thailand and even other east Asian countries. A plaque reads: "Chao Mae Tuptim has received yet another rather less conventional kind of gift, phallic in shape, both small and large, stylized and highly realistic. Over the years, they have been brought by the thousands." Women hoping to get pregnant leave offerings at the

spirit house A spirit house is a shrine to the protective spirit of a place that is found in the Southeast Asian countries of Burma, Cambodia, Laos, Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia, Vietnam and the Philippines. The spirit house is normally in the form of smal ...

, flanking a penis statue draped in cloth, including candles, jasmine, lotus flowers and Chinese incense sticks.

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* * * * * *{{cite book, last=Pilkington, first=Karl, title=The Further Adventures of An Idiot Abroad, url=https://books.google.com/books?id=YRHTaE1DXXEC&pg=PT167, date=20 September 2012, publisher=Canongate Books, isbn=978-0-85786-751-3 Buildings and structures in Bangkok Culture of Thailand Phallic symbols Fertility deities Phallic monuments

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