Emerald Blooper
Nightmare: you are looking at the final, too-late-to-change proofs of a book you are responsible for, and notice a glaring mistake.
On page 21 of our soon-to-be-released publication Emerald Cities, Arts of Siam and Burma, 1775-1950, there’s a photo of one of Thailand’s most important temples. The only problem is, the photo is of the wrong building.
The person who made this mistake is an ignoramus, a bonehead, and a flake. And worst of all, it’s me.
Not being one to accept responsibility if I can help it, I’ve searched for someone else to blame. No luck.
The building that’s supposed to be shown is Wat Benchamabophit in Bangkok (photo A). (Wat means “temple;” Benchamabophit, derived from Sanskrit panchamapavitra, means “The Fifth Revered One.” The temple was built beginning in 1899 by King Rama V (a.k.a. Chulalongkorn, reigned 1868-1910), the fifth monarch of the dynasty.
What actually got shown (photo B) is a smaller copy of Wat Benchamabophit at Bodh Gaya in India. Bodh Gaya is the site where the Buddha achieved Enlightenment, and so, from the traditional Buddhist point of view, the center of the world. Pilgrims have flocked there for untold centuries.
The temple copying Wat Benchamabophit was built by the Thai government at Bodh Gaya in 1957 to mark the year 2500 of the Buddhist calendar (according to Thai reckoning).
The photo of the great temple in Bangkok that was supposed to go into our book, as well as the photo of the copy in India that ended up in the book, were both taken by me. How I—who am supposed to know better—managed to mix them up is a mystery.
Thank goodness for blogs as a vehicle of confession and correction.
Forrest McGill, Chief Curator
12 Responses to “Emerald Blooper”
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Nancy on August 31st, 2009 at 6:43 pm
Well, Buddhism is all about non-attachment and getting off the wheel of earthly desire so maybe that covers the desire to be right when it comes to images of temples? I prescribe a course of Thai beer and some of their delicious food which I cannot pronounce.
maitree on September 1st, 2009 at 9:46 am
As the Thai would likely respond to you, “Jai yen yen,” meaning “may your heart be cool and calm.” And likely this would be followed by the ubiquitous phrase, “mai pen rai,” meaning “no worries, it’s okay.” Unless you had pointed it out to me, I would have not realized the difference. The two photos are very similar given that the Thai temple is obviously a copy of the other one. Personally, I would follow Nancy’s advice and try the relatively new Thai food establishment on Larkin Street between O’Farrell and Ellis. I can personally vouch for the food.
xensen on September 1st, 2009 at 9:52 am
Good advice, Maitree. (Actually the Indian temple is the copy and the Thai one is the original.)
bittermelon on September 1st, 2009 at 12:46 pm
Great “confessional” entry. The first step is always acknowledgment / acceptance, right? Honest mistakes happen all the time. And hey, look at it this way. Now the rest of us mere mortals are feeling okay that even the chief curator can make a mistake every once in awhile!
As (one of) the resident picky eater(s), I’ll have to concur with Maitree’s recommended restaurant. It’s quite excellent; you’ll feel better in no time.
sfmike on September 1st, 2009 at 4:29 pm
Nonesuch Records has been on a printing proof disaster roll lately. They printed the libretto to John Adams’ oratorio “A Flowering Tree,” with Act I followed by lots of photos…and then, instead of the words to Act II, they printed Act I all over again.
Last month they also released David Robertson and the St. Louis Symphony playing John Adams’ new “Doctor Atomic Symphony.” Only problem was that in big, block letters it said, “DAVID ROBERSTON.”
cristina on September 1st, 2009 at 4:39 pm
Considering what a beautiful catalog it is, perhaps this is your one token imperfection?
Nancy on September 1st, 2009 at 5:48 pm
You know what – this is probably an “imperfection” to prevent hubris and being smitted (smote?zapped?) by some angry deity. When I lived in Turkey, our cook was Kurdish. She came from a family of weavers and had woven carpets when she was little but when she got older, her hands were too big to tie the tiny knots. She told me that the weavers always leave a tiny imperfection, perhaps a thread unknotted, to show that they acknowledge their imperfect selves. This is so they don’t challenge The Creator by pretending to be perfect or by creating something that mimics the perfection of creation that can only come from God.
Or you can always claim that Mercury was retrograde.
Now, after that I certainly think we are all ready to have that beer and Thai food.
xensen on September 2nd, 2009 at 1:52 pm
On one of Gary Snyder’s books he is identified on the spine as “Gary Synder” and I myself … er, well, never mind.
Roberta on September 5th, 2009 at 12:30 am
As the ultimate and proper mea culpa, will the correct photograph be slipped into all the catalogs so that buyers will be enlightened as to the true temple? I myself intend to buy the catalog so it would be nice to have the right photograph. Or have them available at the store next to the catalog display so people can pick one up and slip it in themselves.
Gardner Campbell on September 12th, 2009 at 11:14 am
Oh, this is wonderful–not the mistake, though as all the commenters have noted, it has its own capacity to embody and evoke wonder–but to find the blog and hear your voice so clearly and unmistakeably. A new set of splendors to explore, and the chance to reconnect with a mentor and teacher and wonderful colleague from a few years back (indeed). Confess, create, and continue to thrive, my friend!
xensen on September 14th, 2009 at 9:56 am
Thanks, Roberta. I’m glad you will be buying the catalogue (which I feel is one of the best we’ve done). I think we will include an erratum slip — this is the only error we know about to this point — although we won’t be able to have a color image on it; perhaps it will reference this blog post.
forrest on September 15th, 2009 at 7:13 am
Thanks for the kind comments, Gardner. Hope you are doing well at Baylor. Come see the show!