Wat Ratchaburana is located right next to Wat Mahathat in the central part of Ayutthaya. In 15th century, the temple was erected by King Boromracha II in memory of his elder brothers Ay and Yi, killed in a duel over the succession to the throne.

The design of the temple is derived from the Khmer prasat of earlier periods but is loftier with a higher base and a taller central tower.

At the site of the cremation and at the place where his brothers fought and died he had two chedis created in which to keep their ashes. Columns and walls of the wiharn still stand, as do some ruined chedis around the prang and also parts of the surrounding walls complete with lancet gateways.

The large prang with its fine figured stucco, portraying nagas supporting garudas, is exceptionally well preserved. The vault of Wat Ratchaburana became known to the public some decades ago, and looters broke into the vault in 1957.

The looters were apprehended, but a lot of the stolen goods were never recovered. Later on more than 100,000 votive Buddhist tablets were found, as well as gold jewelry with a combined weight of more than 100 kilograms.

The vaults inside the main prang also displayed mural paintings, depicting the previous lives of the Buddha. Unfortunately, over the last few years these images have deteriorated a lot. Only very few visible images are left.