Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
lamo Emilio Gerini, who had a few years earlier been appointed by Rama
V
as a military
instructor for the Royal Guard. The engineer was thus drawn into royal circles, and when
he was offered the position of assistant chief engineer with the newly-created Ministry of
Public Works, under the direction of Prince Naris, he readily accepted. There had been no
government agency responsible for public projects before that time, foreign contractors
having carried out projects on an ad hoc basis.
Allegri now found himself in what must have been an exhilarating position, although
not at first an easy one. He was the sole Italian amongst a number of British and German
engineers, and spoke, literally, only phrasebook English. But the scope of the work more
than compensated. he king, as absolute monarch and with a very clear vision of what he
wanted, was decreeing an endless stream of grand projects: palaces, villas, bridges, roads
and railways. Within two years Allegri had been appointed chief engineer, where he was
involved in all the major building projects during the second half of the fifth reign. Along
with the best materials from Europe he was also able to hire architects, engineers and
craftsmen, and the number of Italians working in the departments responsible for engin-
eering, architecture, sculpture, marble work and fresco painting grew to around forty. Of
these, there are several names that can be attached to some of the most outstanding build-
ings and monuments in Bangkok today. Mario Tamagno, who arrived in 1900 and stayed
in the city on a twenty-five year contract. Annibale Rigotti, who arrived in 1907 and spent
two periods in Siam, the second in the mid-1920s. Ercole Manfredi, who arrived in 1909
and who was to remain in Bangkok for the remainder of his long life, passing away in 1973
at the age of 89. Most enduring of all the names, perhaps, is that of Corrado Feroci, who
was invited to Siam in 1923 to teach sculpture at the Fine Arts Department, and who de-
signed and sculpted many of Thailand's best-known monuments. Feroci stayed in Thail-
and for the rest of his life, becoming a Thai citizen during World War
II
to avoid arrest
by the occupying Japanese army. He was known thereafter as Silpa Bhirasri. He founded
Silpakorn University and is regarded as the father of modern art in Thailand. His birthday,
15
th
September, is observed each year as Silpa Bhirasri Day.
Venice of the East: Italian bridges span the canal at the Marble Temple.
