Angkor Thom
Remarkable in scale and architectural ingenuity, the ancient city of Angkor Thom, which means
Great City in Khmer, was founded by King Jayavarman VII in the late 12th century. The largest city in the Khmer Empire at one time, it is protected by a wall 26 ft (8 m) high, about 7.5 miles (12 km) long, and surrounded by a wide moat. The city has five gates – four facing the cardinal directions and an extra one on the east side – all bearing four giant stone faces. Within the city are several ruins, the most famous of which is the Bayon, an atmospheric temple at the center of this complex.
Exploring the complex
The fortified city of Angkor Thom is spread over an area of nearly 4 sq miles (10 sq km). Of the five gateways into the city, the most commonly used is the South Gate, from which a pathway leads straight to the Bayon temple. Beyond this lie the ruins of many other striking monuments, including Baphuon and Phimeanakas.
The imposing South Gate is the best preserved of the five gateways into Angkor Thom.
Its approach is via an impressive causeway flanked by 154 stone statues – gods on the left side, demons on the right –each carrying a giant serpent.
The South Gate itself is a massive 75-ft (23-m) high structure, surmounted by a triple tower with four gigantic stone faces facing the cardinal directions. The gate is flanked by statues of the three-headed elephant Erawan, the fabled mount of the Hindu god, Indra.
Baphuon
Believed to be one of the grandest of Angkor’s temples, Baphuon was built by King Udayadityavarman II in the 11th century. A Hindu temple, its pyramidal mountain form represents Mount Meru, the mythical abode of the gods. A central tower with four entrances once stood at its summit, but has long since collapsed.
The temple is approached via a 656-ft (200-m) long raised causeway and has four Preah Palilay and Tep Pranam Two of the lesser, yet still impressive, structures at Angkor Thom, Preah Palilay and Tep
Pranam are located a short distance to the northwest of the Terrace of the Leper King.
Preah Palilay dates from the 13th or 14th century and is a small Buddhist sanctuary set within a 164-ft (50-m) square laterite wall. The sanctuary, which is partially collapsed, is entered via a single gateway, and rises to a tapering stone tower. A 108-ft (33-m) long causeway leads to a terrace
Phimeanakas. This royal temple-palace was built during the 10th century by King Rajendravarman II and added to later by Jayavarman VII. Dedicated to Hinduism, it is also known as the Celestial
Palace, and is associated with the legend of a golden tower that once stood here, and where a nine-headed serpent resided. This magical creature would appear to the king as a woman, and the king would couple with her before going to his other wives and concubines. It was believed that if the king failed to sleep with the serpent-woman, he would die, but by sleeping with her, the royal lineage was saved.
The pyramid-shaped palace is rectangular at the base, and surrounded by a 16-ft (5-m) high wall of laterite enclosing an area of around 37 acres (15 ha). It has five entrance-ways, and the stairs, which are flanked by guardian lions, rise up on all four sides. There are corresponding elephant figures at each of the four corners of the pyramid. The upper terrace offers great views of the Baphuon to the south. Gateways decorated with bas-relief scenes from Hindu epics such as the Mahabharata and Ramayana (Reamker in Khmer). Inside, spanning the western length of Baphuon, is a huge Reclining Buddha. As the temple was dedicated to Hinduism, this image was probably added later, in the 15th century. The temple has been undergoing intensive restoration, and a few sections are now open to the public.
Terrace of the Leper King
This small platform dates from the late 12th century. Standing on top of this structure is a headless statue known as the Leper King. Once believed to be an image of King Jayavarman VII, who, according to legend, had the disease, it is in fact a representation of Yama, the God of
Death. This statue is, however, a replica, as the original was taken to Phnom Penh’s National Museum. To the east of the sanctuary, which is distinguished by fine naga (serpent) balustrades.
Nearby, to the east, lies Tep Pranam, a Buddhist sanctuary built in the 16th century. This was probably originally dedicated to the Mahayana school. Used as a place of Theravada worship now, it features a big sandstone Buddha image, seated in the “calling the earth to witness” mudra (posture).
The terrace is marked by two walls, both beautifully restored and decorated with exquisite bas-reliefs. Of the two, the inner one is more remarkable, and is covered with figures of underworld deities, kings, celestial females, multiple-headed nagas, devadas, apsaras, warriors, and strange marine creatures.
The exact function of this terrace, which appears to be an extension of the Terrace of Elephants, is not clear. It was probably used either for royal receptions or cremations.
North and South Khleang These two essentially similar buildings are located to the east of the main road running past the Terrace of Elephants.
The North Khleang was built by King Jayavarman toward the end of the 10th century, and the South Khleang was constructed by King Suryavarman I during the early 11th century. The main architectural feature of the Khleangs are their sandstone lintels as well as elegant blustered stone windows.
Unfortunately, the original function of the buildings is as yet unknown. Khleang, which means storehouse, is a modern designation and considered misleading.
Terrace of Elephants
Built by King Jayavarman VII, this structure is over 950 ft (300 m) long, stretching from the Baphuon to the connecting Terrace of the Leper King. It has three main platforms and two smaller ones. The terrace was primarily used by the king to view military and other parades. It is decorated with almost life-sized images of sand stone elephants in a procession accompanied by mahouts. There are also images of tigers, serpents, and Garuda, the eagle mount of Vishnu.
The Bayon
Located in the heart of Angkor Thom, the Bayon is one of the city’s most extraordinary structures, epitomizing the “lost civilization” of Angkor. Shaped like a pyramid, this symbolic temple-mountain rises on three levels, and features 54 towers bearing more than 200 huge, yet enigmatic stone faces. It is entered through eight cruciform towers, linked by galleries that were once covered and which are gradually being restored. These galleries have some of the most striking bas-reliefs found at Angkor, showcasing everyday scenes as well as images of battles, especially those against the Cham.
Preah Khan
Road Map C6. 0.5 miles (1 km) NE of Angkor Thom dawn to dusk daily general Angkor ticket.
Named for the sacred sword owned by the 9th-century King Jayavarman II, the Preah Khan temple complex was built by Jayavarman VII (r.1181–1215). It is believed to have functioned as his
Phnom Bakheng 4 Road Map C6. 550 yards (500 m) S of Angkor Thom dawn to dusk daily general Angkor ticket. Famous for its sunset views of Angkor Wat, the Tonlé Sap, and the Bayon, the ancient Hindu temple of Phnom Bakheng surveys the surrounding plains from the top of a 220-ft (67-m) high hill. Built by King Yasovarman I, the Bakheng complex is one of the region’s first examples of Mount Meru-style temple architecture. The complex was once surrounded by 109 towers spread around its six tiers; however, most of them are now missing.
Temporary capital while Angkor Thom was being restored after it was sacked by the Cham in 1177. It also served as a monastery and religious college with over 1,000 teachers. An inscribed stone stela found here in 1939 indicates that the temple was based at the centre of an ancient city, Nagarajayaciri – jayaciri means sword in Siamese. Originally dedicated to the Buddha, this temple was later vandalized by Hindu rulers who replaced many Buddha images on the walls with carvings of numerous Hindu deities.
Today, the complex extends over a sprawling 2 sq miles (5 sq km), and is surrounded by a 2-mile
(3-km) long laterite wall. The central sanctuary is accessible through four gates set at the cardinal points. One of the main highlights is the Hall of Dancers, named for the apsara bas-reliefs that line the walls. The premises also has a massive baray (reservoir).
The most notable temple in the complex is the Temple of Preah Neak Pean 6 3 miles (5 km) NE of
Angkor Thom.
This monument – a shrine dedicated to Avalokitesvara – is set within the center of a cruciform arrangement of sacred ponds. Around the shrine’s base coil a couple of snakes, giving the temple its name – Entwined Serpents.
Located in the now dry North Baray, the temple is built around a central artificial square pond measuring 230 ft (70 m), which is surrounded by four smaller ponds.
The central pond represents the mythical Lake Anvatapta, which is located at the summit of the universe and is responsible for giving birth to the four great curative rivers, each represented by a different gargoyle at each corner of the central pool. The east head is that of a man, the south a
lion, the west a horse, and the north an elephant. When the temple was functioning, sacred water would be diverted through their mouths into the smaller pools and used to heal devotees.
the Four Faces. Similar to Ta Prohm, Preah Khan is studded with great trees whose roots cover and, in places, pierce the laterite and sandstone structures over which they grow. Unlike Ta Prohm, however, the temple is undergoing restoration by the World Monuments Fund, and many of the trees have now been cut down.
East Baray
The second largest of Angkor’s barays, East Baray measures 4 miles by 1 mile (6 km by 2 km) and was built by King Yasovarman I in the 9th century. Watered by the Stung Treng, it held close to 13 billion gal (50 million cu m) of water and may have been 10 ft (3 m) deep. While some believe that its purpose was symbolic, representing the sea surrounding Mount Meru, others contend its purpose was for irrigation – with a population of about one million, it would have been essential to produce
three rice harvests a year.
On an island in the middle of the baray is the Oriental Mebon temple, built by Rajendravarman II in honor of his parents. Surrounded by three laterite walls, the temple gradually rises to a quincuncial
arrangement of towers dotted with holes that would have supported stucco decorations.
At ground level its stairways are flanked by sandstone lions and at its corners are four well-preserved sandstone elephants.
Pre Rup
Dedicated to the Hindu god Shiva, Pre Rup has five lotus-shaped towers. Thought to have been a crematorium, its name means Turning of the Body, relating to a religious rite of tracing the deceased’s outline in their ashes.
Srah Srang
To the west of Pre Rup lies the great reservoir of Srah Srang or Royal Bath. Built Banteay Kdei 0
3 miles (5 km) E of Angkor Thom.
Built in the late 12th century, Banteay Kdei, meaning Citadel of the Cells, lies west of Srah Srang. This Buddhist temple has four entrances, each guarded by garudas. One of the highlights of this temple is the Hall of Dancers located in the central corridor. In the 7th century and measuring 1,312 ft by 2,625 ft (400 m by 800 m) it was used exclusively by King Jayavarman V and his wives. On the western side of the lake is a landing platform flanked by two sandstone lions and balustrades bearing a large garuda on the back of a three-headed serpent. The lake is best visited at sunrise, when water buffalo graze in its shallows and local children congregate for a swim.
Ta Prohm
Perhaps the most evocative and mysterious of all the temple structures at Angkor, Ta Prohm, which means Ancestor of Brahma, was a wealthy Buddhist monastery built during King Jayavarman VII’s reign (r.1178–1220).
During the Colonial period, the French started their archaeological restoration of the temple, making a deliberate attempt to maintain the structure as they found it by limiting restoration and cutting down little of the surrounding dense jungle. As a result, the temple buildings remain smothered by the roots of giant banyan trees, preserving the atmosphere that 19th-century explorers must have experienced.
LARA CROFT: TOMB RAIDER
Angelina Jolie in Tomb Raider
Long before she became half of a Hollywood power couple, Angelina Jolie was delighting teenagers who played the seminal strategy game, Tomb Raider. With her sultry looks, passable English accent, and lithe figure, she seemed the perfect choice to bring the long-running video game character to the screen.
A couple of scenes in the movie were shot in Cambodia and it is here that Jolie’s global social conscience seems to have been sparked. She remains a firm patron of Cambodia, a UN ambassador, and a champion of children’s causes.
Prasat Kravan
Dating to the 10th century, Prasat Kravan was built by high-ranking officials during the reign of Harshavarman I. It is located at a slight distance from the capital, Angkor, since only royals could build temples close to the city’s centre. Comprising five brick towers, it is one of the smaller temples in the Angkor complex and is dedicated to Vishnu. The temple, whose name means Cardamom Sanctuary, after a tree that stood here, is chiefly remarkable for its brick-work and bas-reliefs, the only such known examples of Khmer art. No mortar was used in its construction, only a kind of vegetable compound.
Partly restored in the 1960s, the bricks, added by Conservation Angkor, are marked with CA.
These brick carvings represent Vishnu; his consort Lakshmi; his eagle mount, Garuda; a naga (serpent); and a number of other divine attendants. The doorways and lintels of all five towers are made of sandstone. The southernmost tower has a fine image of Vishnu riding his eagle mount, while the northernmost tower has an image of Lakshmi. The central tower has a raised stone that was used to receive water for purification rites.
Banteay Srei
Located at the foot of the Kulen Mountain, the remote temple complex of Banteay Srei, meaning Citadel of Beauty, is ornamented with exquisitely detailed carvings.
Executed in pink sandstone, the complex was built in the second half of the 10th century by Yajnavaraha, one of King Rajendravarman’s counselors and future guru of King Jayavarman V. Therefore, unlike most other monuments in Angkor, it is not a royal temple. Granted land along the Stung Siem Reap, Yajnavaraha commissioned the temple to be built here. What separates this miniature scaled temple from so many others in Angkor is the fact that most of its surface area has been elaborately decorated; little wonder that it is often described as the jewel of Khmer art. Discovered in 1914, four of its apsaras were famously snatched by the future French minister of culture, Andre Malraux – who served under President Charles De Gaulle – in 1923.
The statues were recovered and returned soon after.
Rectangular in shape, and enclosed by three walls and the remains of a moat, the central sanctuary contains ornate shrines dedicated to Shiva. The intricately carved lintels reproduce scenes from the Hindu epic, Ramayana.
Representations of Shiva; his consort Parvati; the Monkey God, Hanuman; the divine cowherd, Krishna; and the Demon King, Ravana are all beautifully etched. Also exceptional are the elaborate and finely detailed figures of gods and goddesses carved into the niches of the towers in the central sanctuary. The male divinities carry lances and wear simple loincloths. By contrast, the god-desses, with their long hair tied in buns or plaits, are dressed in loosely draped traditional skirts, and almost every inch of their bodies is laden with gorgeous jewellery.
Roluos Group
The earliest temple monuments to have been built in the Angkor region, the Roluos Group borrows its name from the small town of Roluos, 8 miles (13 km) east of Siem Reap. The temples mark the site of Hariharalaya, the first Khmer capital established by Indravarman I (r.877–89).
Three main complexes can be found here. To the north of Highway 6, en route to Phnom Penh from Siem Reap, is Lolei. Founded by Yasovarman I (r.889–910), this temple stands on an artificial mound in the middle of a small reservoir, and is based on a double platform surrounded by a laterite wall. The four central brick towers have surprisingly well-preserved false doors and inscriptions.
To the south of Lolei stands Preah Ko, meaning the Sacred Bull. Built by Indravarman I, to honor his parents as well as Jayavarman II, the founder of the Khmer Empire, this temple was dedicated to the worship of Shiva. The main sanctuary consists of six brick towers resting on a raised laterite platform. Close by are three statues of the sacred bull Nandi, for whom the temple was named, which are in a remarkably good condition.
The motifs on the lintels, false doors, and columns are also well preserved. They include kala, mythical creatures with grinning mouths and large bulging eyes; makara, sea creatures with trunk-like snouts; and Garuda. The temple sits resplendent in its serene rural setting. Beyond Preah Ko, the huge mass of Bakong, by far the largest of the Roluos Group, is well worth a visit.
Originally dedicated to Shiva in AD 881, the temple has since become a place of worship for Buddhists. More than a 1,000 years ago, it was the central feature of Hariharalaya, as a temple-mountain representing Mount Meru, the mythical abode of the gods. Approached by a pathway that is protected by a seven-headed naga and flanked by guesthouses for pilgrims, the mount rises in four stages, the first three of which are flanked by stone elephants at the corners. At the summit rests the square central sanctuary, with four levels and a lotus-shaped tower rising from the middle.
The mount is surrounded by eight massive brick towers that feature finely carved sandstone decorations.
Chong Kneas
Road Map C6. 9 miles (15 km) of Siem Reap. Gecko Environment Centre (063)-832-812.
www.tsbr-ed.org
By far the most accessible floating village from Siem Reap, and the most commercial, Chong Kneas is typical of the villages found on the Tonlé Sap Lake. Inhabited by a mix of Vietnamese and Khmer people, this atmospheric settlement can be reached either by road from Siem Reap or on a boat. The road trip, passing lush paddy fields and an ancient temple atop Phnom Krom, takes about 30 minutes from the town centre. Although less intriguing than the Kompong Khleang, Chong Kneas is worth a visit for its floating market, clinic, catfish farm, school, and restaurants. Also an exciting highlight is the Gecko Environment Centre’s educating exhibition on the ecology and problems relating to the management of the Tonlé Sap’s biodiversity.
Boats to Chong Kneas and other distant villages can be hired from Siem Reap, but prices are usually quite high. Prek Toal Bird Sanctuary 19 miles (31 km) of Siem Reap. From Chong Kneas. Widely regarded as the most important breeding ground for large waterbirds in Southeast Asia, Prek Toal Bird Sanctuary covers 120 sq miles (311 sq km) on the northwest tip of the Tonlé Sap Lake. Of the three designated biospheres on the lake, Prek Toal is the best known and is easily accessible from Siem Reap.
The seasonally flooded forest abounds with numerous endangered birds such as the lesser and greater adjutants, milky and painted storks, black-headed ibis, spot-billed pelican, and grey-headed fish eagle. An ideal day trip for ornithologists and wildlife enthusiasts, Prek Toal is best visited during the dry season (Feb–Apr) – the time when migratory birds congregate in this preserve in large numbers.
Visiting the sanctuary can be an expensive proposition, although the price includes transport to and on the lake, entrance to the biosphere, meals, and guided tours. Trips can be arranged usually through a guesthouse or a tour operator. Visitors can also make their own arrangements, which would include hiring a taxi to the Chong Kneas dock, from where a boat to the Prek Toal Environ mental Research Station can be hired. Those keen on witnessing the spectacular sunrises and sunsets can stay overnight at the research station, although they will have to pay for accommodations and food.
