SKIP IT! This always appears as one of the top ten attractions in Bangkok. Skip it! It's over-rated. Jim Thompson went to Thailand (then called Siam) during World War 2, loved it and came back after the war. Afterwards he went into the silk trading business and made a fortune. They do not allow photography inside the buildings.
This is a Buddhist prayer box. Jim Thompson was a Christian, but they put a prayer box here. In addition they also placed 1,000 Buddhist statues on the property.