Khmer architecture

Latest research reveals that the Khmer already erected stone buildings in the protohistoric period, which they used for the worship of mighty tutelary spirits.

This earliest extant architecture consists of relatively small cells made from prefabricated megalithic construction parts, which probably date at least to the second century BC.

Good examples are the temple towers of Preah Ko, Lolei and Bakong at Hariharalaya, and Chóp Mạt in Tay Ninh.

While the Khmer built a standard brick tower, Po Klaung Garai directed his people to build an impressive replica of paper and wood.

[9] Angkorian builders used laterite, a clay that is soft when taken from the ground but that hardens when exposed to the sun, for foundations and other hidden parts of buildings.

Khmer temples were typically enclosed by a concentric series of walls, with the central sanctuary in the middle; this arrangement represented the mountain ranges surrounding Mount Meru, the mythical home of the gods.

House of Fire, or Dharmasala, is the name given to a type of building found only in temples constructed during the reign of late 12th-century monarch Jayavarman VII: Preah Khan, Ta Prohm and Banteay Chhmar.

[21] Other Khmer temple mountains include Baphuon, Pre Rup, Ta Keo, Koh Ker, the Phimeanakas, and most notably the Phnom Bakheng at Angkor.

Similarly, the outer gallery at the Bayon contains extensive bas-reliefs documenting the everyday life of the medieval Khmer as well as historical events from the reign of King Jayavarman VII.

[24] The following is a listing of the motifs illustrated in some of the more famous Angkorian narrative bas-reliefs: Angkorean shrines frequently opened in only one direction, typically to the east.

"From the monumental point of view", according to Angkor-scholar Maurice Glaize, "the advantage is clear – the square of the base not having to spread in surface area, the entire building rises to its zenith with a particular thrust".

Other stories in the Mahabharata detail the exploits of individual apsaras, who were often used by the gods as agents to persuade or seduce mythological demons, heroes and ascetics.

The reachisey is another mythical animal, similar to the gajasimha, with the head of a lion, a short elephantine trunk, and the scaly body of a dragon.

Scholars have speculated that the origin of the kala as a decorative element in Khmer temple architecture may be found in an earlier period when the skulls of human victims were incorporated into buildings as a kind of protective magic or apotropaism.

Thus, the kalas of Angkor may represent the Khmer civilization's adoption into its decorative iconography of elements derived from long forgotten primitive antecedents.

[40] The following are some of the most important Angkorian depictions of the life of Krishna: The linga is a phallic post or cylinder symbolic of the god Shiva and of creative power.

A makara is a mythical sea monster with the body of a serpent, the trunk of an elephant, and a head that can have features reminiscent of a lion, a crocodile, or a dragon.

The makara is a central motif in the design of the famously beautiful lintels of the Roluos group of temples: Preah Ko, Bakong, and Lolei.

To the Angkorian, nāgas were symbols of water and figured in the myths of origin for the Khmer people, who were said to be descended from the union of an Indian Brahman and a serpent princess from Cambodia.

In some Angkorian nāga-bridges, as for example those located at the entrances to 12th century city of Angkor Thom, the nāga-shaped balustrades are supported not by simple posts but by stone statues of gigantic warriors.

These giants are the devas and asuras who used the nāga king Vasuki in order to the churn the Ocean of Milk in quest of the amrita or elixir of immortality.

A famous tympanum from Banteay Srei depicts Shiva sitting on Mount Kailasa with his consort, while the demon king Ravana shakes the mountain from below.

Bas reliefs depict Vishna battling with against asura opponents, or riding on the shoulders of his vahana or mount, the gigantic eagle-man Garuda.

During the Angkor era, the architectural landscape consisted predominantly of temples constructed from durable materials such as brick, sandstone, and laterite.

In stark contrast, the royal residences of the Khmer courts were predominantly crafted from wood and other perishable materials, rendering them susceptible to the ravages of time and leaving no trace of their existence in the present day.

The enduring remnants of this era are the brick or stone temples, such as those found in the Angkor complex, which stand as the sole vestiges of what was once expansive wooden settlements and palaces.

[49] However, a meticulous 13th-century account by a Chinese emissary to Angkor provides a detailed description of the palace, depicting it as an assemblage of imposing structures crowned with lead-tiled roofs.

Intricately carved bas reliefs at Bayon and Banteay Chhmar portray various wooden buildings featuring triangular pediments and roofs, identified as representative of the royal halls within Angkorian palaces.

This shift marked the adoption of wooden structures as the new norm in Khmer architecture, supplanting the erstwhile prominence of stone temples in earlier periods.

[51] Chinese and Vietnamese houses in Cambodian town and villages typically are built directly on the ground and have earthen, cement, or tile floors, depending upon the economic status of the owner.

The 12th-century temple of Angkor Wat is the masterpiece of Angkorian architecture. Constructed under the direction of the Khmer king Suryavarman II , Angkor Wat is a Hindu - Buddhist temple.
The central prang of Angkor Wat temple symbolizes the mount Meru .
A cruciform gallery separates the courtyards at Angkor Wat .
A gopura leads into the 12th-century temple compound at Ta Prohm .
Many of the gopuras constructed under Jayavarman VII toward the end of the 12th century, such as this one at Angkor Thom , are adorned with gigantic stone faces of Avalokiteshvara .
Unusually, the libraries at Angkor Wat open to both the East and the West.
The Bakong is the earliest surviving Temple Mountain at Angkor.
A bas-relief in a tympanum at Banteay Srei shows Indra releasing the rains in an attempt to extinguish the fire created by Agni .
The Battle of Kurukshetra is the subject of this bas-relief at Angkor Wat .
This scene from the outer gallery at the Bayon shows Chinese expats negotiating with Khmer merchants at an Angkorean market.
This blind door at Banteay Srei is flanked by colonettes. Above the door is a lintel , above which is a tympanum with a scene from the Mahabharata .
Lintel and pediment at Banteay Srei ; the motif on the pediment is Shiva Nataraja .
Rich-carved decoration of Preah Ko lintel
The stairs leading to the inner enclosure at Ankor Wat are daunting.
This dvarapala stands guard at Banteay Kdei .
In this 9th century lintel, now on display at the Musée Guimet , Garuda bears Vishnu on his shoulders.
A kala serves as the base for a deity at the 10th-century Hindu temple Banteay Srei .
This segmented linga from 10th century Angkor has a square base, an octagonal middle, and a round tip.
The corner of a lintel on one of the brick towers at Bakong shows a man riding on the back of a makara that in turn disgorges another monster.
Mucalinda , the nāga king who shielded Buddha as he sat in meditation, was a favorite motif for Cambodian Buddhist sculptors from the 11th century. This statue is dated between 1150 and 1175 CE.
This multi-headed nāga is part of a decorative lintel from the end of the 9th century.
Stone Asuras hold the nāga Vasuki on a bridge leading into the 12th century city of Angkor Thom .
A linga in the form of a quincunx , set inside a yoni , is carved into the riverbed at Kbal Spean .