Originally called Wat Payier (Bamboo Forest) in B.E. 1977 (B.C. 1434) the Stupa was struck by lightning and broke open to reveal the Emerald Buddha (presently located in the shrine of Wat Phra Sri Ratanasasadaram in the Grand Palace). The people of Chiang Rai therefore called the shrine "Wat Phra Keo" from then on, this new name meaning "Wat of the Holy Glass Buddha". In B.E. 2521, H.M. King Phumiphol graciously bestowed the Wat to the Royal Third Class of Wats.
