Jim Thompson was a New York architect who served in the OSS (Office of Strategic Services, now the CIA) in Thailand during World War II and afterward settled in Bangkok. Almost single-handedly he revived Thailand’s silk industry, employing Thai Muslims as skilled silk weavers and building up a thriving industry. After expanding his sales to international markets, Mr. Thompson mysteriously disappeared in 1967 while vacationing in the Cameron Highlands of Malaysia. Despite extensive investigations, his disappearance has never been resolved. (The most recent theory, for which some evidence apparently exists, is that he was accidentally struck by a truck and his body hidden to prevent repercussions.)
Thompson’s legacy is substantial, as both an entrepreneur and a collector, and his Thai house contains a splendid collection of Khmer sculpture, Chinese porcelain, Burmese carving (especially a 17th-century teak Buddha), and antique Thai scroll paintings.
The house is comprised of six linked teak and theng (harder than teak) wood houses from central Thailand that were rebuilt according to Thai architectural principles, but with Western additions (such as a staircase and window screens). In some rooms the floor is made of Italian marble, but the wall panels are pegged teak. The house slopes toward the center to help stabilize the structure (the original houses were built on stilts without foundations). The busy nearby Klong San Sap and landscaped garden make a lovely spot, especially on a hot day.
You can buy silk from the Jim Thompson Company retail shop at the intersection of Surawong and Rama IV roads.