Thai Human Imagery Museum

Technically, this one is in Nakhon Pathom, 31 kilometres out along the Pinklao–Nakhon Chai Si road. It is worth the trip if you are willing to feel mildly unsettled in a way you cannot quite explain. 

The museum opened in June 1989 and was founded by artist Duangkaew Phityakornsilp, who spent a decade developing a technique for making lifelike figures in fibreglass, wax being rather impractical in a tropical climate. The result is more than 100 life-size figures displayed in atmospheric dioramas covering the Thai royal family, the history of Buddhism in Thailand, revered monks, scenes from everyday Thai life across different eras and a second floor of international figures including Abraham Lincoln and Mahatma Gandhi.

What makes it strange is how well it works. Fibreglass, under the right lighting, reads remarkably close to skin. The monks in meditation, royal ceremonies and domestic scenes all sit just inside the uncanny valley rather than safely outside it. You may find yourself lowering your voice without meaning to. It is one of the few museums in greater Bangkok where visitors seem to leave more quietly than they arrived.

43/2 Moo 1, Borommaratchachonnani Rd, Kilometre 31, Khun Kaeo, Nakhon Chai Si, Nakhon Pathom. Van from terminal in front of Central Pinklao towards Nakhon Chai Si; ask to stop at the museum. Open Monday-Friday, 9am-5.30pm; Saturday-Sunday and public holidays, 8.30am-6pm. Entry is B300 for non-Thai adults, B150 for non-Thai children; B70 for Thai adults, B30 for Thai children.