Santiphap Park (, , literally "Peace Park") is an park in

Bangkok Bangkok, officially known in 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 estimated populatio ...

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 b ...

. It is located between

Ratchawithi Road Bang Phlat Intersection where Ratchawithi Road ends Ratchawithi Road, also spelled Rajvithi ( th, ถนนราชวิถี, ) is a major road in Bangkok, Thailand. It begins in Ratchathewi district at Sam Liam Din Daeng Junction, where it ...

and Rang Nam Road in

Ratchathewi Ratchathewi ( th, ราชเทวี, ) is a district in central Bangkok, Thailand. Clockwise from the north, its neighboring districts are Phaya Thai, Din Daeng, Huai Khwang, Watthana, Pathum Wan and Dusit. History The district was part ...

district. The land on which Santiphap Park is built is leased from the

Crown Property Bureau The Crown Property Bureau (CPB) ( th, สำนักงานทรัพย์สินพระมหากษัตริย์; ) is legally the administrative agency responsible for managing the property of the King of Thailand. It has no ...

by the

Bangkok Metropolitan Administration The Bangkok Metropolitan Administration ( th, กรุงเทพมหานคร; ) (BMA) is the local government of Bangkok (also called ''Krung Thep Maha Nakhon'' in Thai), which includes the capital of the Kingdom of Thailand. The governm ...

(BMA). It was previously the site of subsidized housing overseen by the National Housing Authority. The BMA obtained a 30-year lease, beginning in October 1990. Construction on the park began in 1997.Suan Santiphap
Public Park Office, Department of Environment (in Thai). Retrieved on February 26, 2009. Santiphap Park was opened to the public on August 18, 1998. The name ''Santiphap'', meaning "peace", as well as the date of the park's opening, commemorate the end of

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

, which took place 53 years earlier. The

dove Columbidae () is a bird family consisting of doves and pigeons. It is the only family in the order Columbiformes. These are stout-bodied birds with short necks and short slender bills that in some species feature fleshy ceres. They primaril ...

is the symbol of Santiphap Park. A blackened bronze sculpture situated in the park's central pond depicts a dove carrying in its beak an olive branch with five blossoms, representing the spread of peace throughout the world. The sculpture is based on a drawing by

Pablo Picasso Pablo Ruiz Picasso (25 October 1881 – 8 April 1973) was a Spanish painter, sculptor, printmaker, ceramicist and theatre designer who spent most of his adult life in France. One of the most influential artists of the 20th century, he is ...

. The entrance signs to Santiphap Park are a facsimile of the handwriting of

Buddhadasa Bhikkhu Phra Dharmakosācārya (Nguam Indapañño) ( th, พระธรรมโกศาจารย์ (เงื่อม อินฺทปญฺโญ); ), also known as Buddhadāsa Bhikkhu ( th, พุทธทาสภิกขุ; , 27 May 1906 � ...

, a renowned Buddhist monk, philosopher and pacifist. StriatedHeronAtSantiphapPark

Over 30 species of birds have been recorded in the park since its creation. Birds most often seen or heard there:

feral pigeon Feral pigeons (''Columba livia domestica'' or ''Columba livia forma urbana''), also called city doves, city pigeons, or street pigeons,Nagy, Kelsi, and Johnson, Phillip David. ''Trash animals: how we live with natures filthy, feral, invasive, an ...

spotted dove The spotted dove (''Spilopelia chinensis'') is a small and somewhat long-tailed pigeon that is a common resident breeding bird across its native range on the Indian subcontinent and in Southeast Asia. The species has been introduced to many parts ...

zebra dove The zebra dove (''Geopelia striata''), also known as the barred ground dove, or barred dove, is a species of bird of the dove family, Columbidae, native to Southeast Asia. They are small birds with a long tail, predominantly brownish-grey in colo ...

plaintive cuckoo The plaintive cuckoo (''Cacomantis merulinus'') is a species of bird belonging to the genus ''Cacomantis'' in the cuckoo family Cuculidae. It is native to Asia, from India, Nepal and China to Indonesia. Description The plaintive cuckoo is fa ...

common koel The common koels are three species of cuckoos. They have commonly been considered conspecific under the scientific name ''Eudynamys scolopaceus'', but are increasingly treated as separate species: * Asian koel, ''Eudynamys scolopaceus''. * Black-b ...

coppersmith barbet The coppersmith barbet (''Psilopogon haemacephalus''), also called crimson-breasted barbet and coppersmith, is an Asian barbet with crimson forehead and throat, known for its metronomic call that sounds similar to a coppersmith striking metal wit ...

Asian palm-swift The Asian palm swift (''Cypsiurus balasiensis'') is a small swift. It is very similar to the African palm swift, ''Cypsiurus parvus'', and was formerly considered to be the same species. It is a common resident breeder in tropical Asia from Ind ...

streak-eared bulbul The streak-eared bulbul (''Pycnonotus conradi'') is a member of the bulbul family of passerine birds. It is found from Thailand and northern and central Malay Peninsula to southern Indochina. Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical moist ...

black-naped oriole The black-naped oriole (''Oriolus chinensis'') is a passerine bird in the oriole family that is found in many parts of Asia. There are several distinctive populations within the wide distribution range of this species and in the past the slender ...

large-billed crow The large-billed crow (''Corvus macrorhynchos''), formerly referred to widely as the jungle crow, is a widespread Asian species of crow. It is very adaptable and is able to survive on a wide range of food sources, making it capable of colonizing ...

oriental magpie-robin The Oriental magpie-robin (''Copsychus saularis'') is a small passerine bird that was formerly classed as a member of the thrush family Turdidae, but now considered an Old World flycatcher. They are distinctive black and white birds with a long ...

, pied fantail, black-collared starling,

Asian pied starling The Indian pied myna (''Gracupica contra'') is a species of starling found in the Indian subcontinent. It is usually found in small groups mainly on the plains and low foothills. It is often seen within cities and villages although it is not as b ...

, common myna, white-vented myna,

olive-backed sunbird The olive-backed sunbird (''Cinnyris jugularis''), also known as the yellow-bellied sunbird, is a species of sunbird found from Southern Asia to Australia. Taxonomy In 1760 the French zoologist Mathurin Jacques Brisson included a description ...

scarlet-backed flowerpecker The scarlet-backed flowerpecker (''Dicaeum cruentatum'') is a species of passerine bird in the flowerpecker family Dicaeidae. Sexually dimorphic, the male has navy blue upperparts with a bright red streak down its back from its crown to its tail ...

Eurasian tree sparrow The Eurasian tree sparrow (''Passer montanus'') is a passerine bird in the sparrow family with a rich chestnut crown and nape, and a black patch on each pure white cheek. The sexes are similarly plumaged, and young birds are a duller versio ...

. Common winter (October–March) visitors:

barn swallow The barn swallow (''Hirundo rustica'') is the most widespread species of swallow in the world. In fact, it appears to have the largest natural distribution of any of the world's passerines, ranging over 251 million square kilometres globally. ...

, red-breasted flycatcher,

inornate warbler The yellow-browed warbler (''Phylloscopus inornatus'') is a leaf warbler ( family Phylloscopidae) which breeds in the east Palearctic. This warbler is strongly migratory and winters mainly in tropical South Asia and South-east Asia, but also ...

. Species which are seen there less often (but all year round):

striated heron The striated heron (''Butorides striata'') also known as mangrove heron, little green heron or green-backed heron, is a small heron, about 44 cm tall. Striated herons are mostly sedentary and noted for some interesting behavioral traits. T ...

Javan pond-heron The Javan pond heron (''Ardeola speciosa'') is a wading bird of the heron family, found in shallow fresh and salt-water wetlands in Southeast Asia. Its diet comprises insects, fish, and crabs. The Javan pond heron is typically 45 cm long wi ...

, little egret,

painted stork The painted stork (''Mycteria leucocephala'') is a large wader in the stork family. It is found in the wetlands of the plains of tropical Asia south of the Himalayas in the Indian Subcontinent and extending into Southeast Asia. Their distinctiv ...

house swift The house swift (''Apus nipalensis'') is a species of swift in the family Apodidae. It is found in Japan, Nepal, and Southeast Asia. It is capable of flying long distances by alternately shutting off hemispheres of their brain in-flight. In May 2 ...

common iora The common iora (''Aegithina tiphia'') is a small passerine bird found across the tropical Indian subcontinent and Southeast Asia, with populations showing plumage variations, some of which are designated as subspecies. A species found in scrub a ...

common tailorbird The common tailorbird (''Orthotomus sutorius'') is a songbird found across tropical Asia. Popular for its nest made of leaves "sewn" together and immortalized by Rudyard Kipling as ''Darzee'' in his ''Jungle Book'', it is a common resident in urb ...

yellow-vented bulbul The yellow-vented bulbul (''Pycnonotus goiavier''), or eastern yellow-vented bulbul, is a member of the bulbul family of passerine birds. It is a resident breeder in southeastern Asia from Indochina to the Philippines. It is found in a wide vari ...

red-whiskered bulbul The red-whiskered bulbul (''Pycnonotus jocosus''), or crested bulbul, is a passerine bird native to Asia. It is a member of the bulbul family. It is a resident frugivore found mainly in tropical Asia. It has been introduced in many tropical are ...

house sparrow The house sparrow (''Passer domesticus'') is a bird of the sparrow family Passeridae, found in most parts of the world. It is a small bird that has a typical length of and a mass of . Females and young birds are coloured pale brown and grey, an ...

. Less common winter visitors:

Chinese pond-heron The Chinese pond heron (''Ardeola bacchus'') is an East Asian freshwater bird of the heron family, (Ardeidae). It is one of six species of birds known as "pond herons" (genus '' Ardeola''). It is parapatric (or nearly so) with the Indian pon ...

ashy drongo The ashy drongo (''Dicrurus leucophaeus'') is a species of bird in the drongo family Dicruridae. It is found widely distributed across South and Southeast Asia with several populations that vary in the shade of grey, migration patterns and in th ...

brown shrike The brown shrike (''Lanius cristatus'') is a bird in the shrike family that is found mainly in Asia. It is closely related to the red-backed shrike (''L. collurio'') and isabelline shrike (''L. isabellinus''). The genus name, ''Lanius'', is deri ...

, Asian paradise-flycatcher. In the wasteland on which the park was later constructed,

white-breasted waterhen The white-breasted waterhen (''Amaurornis phoenicurus'') is a waterbird of the rail and crake family, Rallidae, that is widely distributed across South and Southeast Asia. They are dark slaty birds with a clean white face, breast and belly. The ...

black-capped kingfisher The black-capped kingfisher (''Halcyon pileata'') is a tree kingfisher which is widely distributed in tropical Asia from India east to China, Korea and Southeast Asia. This most northerly of the tree kingfishers is resident over much of its rang ...

, and verditer flycatcher were also recorded. Much more unusually for central Bangkok,

orange-headed thrush The orange-headed thrush (''Geokichla citrina'') is a bird in the thrush family. It is common in well-wooded areas of the Indian Subcontinent and Southeast Asia. Most populations are resident. The species shows a preference for shady damp area ...

and laced woodpecker have been recorded in a quieter condominium garden 50 m from the park. The park contains a public address system which is used to broadcast a numbered list of park rules at 07:00, 08:00, 15:00, and 18:00; the national anthem at 08:00 and 18:00; and Thai music 07:00-10:00 and 15:00-18:00 most days. The rules and anthem are often audible from over a block away. Complaints by local residents have been ignored by the park management. The central circular paved area in the park is used for aerobics 18:00-18:45, weather permitting. Santiphap Park is open from 05:00 until 21:00, and is used by 2–3,000 people on working days, and 3–4,000 on holidays.

References

{{coord, 13.763151, N, 100.541489, E, source:thwiki_region:TH_type:landmark, format=dms, display=title Parks in Bangkok Ratchathewi district 1998 establishments in Thailand Peace parks