Day 2 - 14th May 2007, Monday
We walked to the nearby Baphuon which is still within the site where our driver was waiting for us to bring us to next point, Angkor Wat. At the time of my visit, the Baphuon is still under restoration. 4 years later, in April 2011, after 51 years, the archaeologists finished the restoration of the temple. Baphuon was built in the mid-11th century, it is a three-tiered temple mountain built as the state temple of Udayadityavarman II dedicated to the Hindu God Shiva. It is the archetype of the Baphuon style. The temple adjoins the southern enclosure of the royal palace and measures 120 metres east-west by 100 metres north-south at its base and stands 34 meters tall without its tower, which would have made it roughly 50 meters tall. In the late 15th century, the Baphuon was converted to a Buddhist temple. A 9 meter tall by 70 meter long statue of a reclining Buddha was built on the west side's second level, which probably required the demolition of the 8 meter tower above, thus explaining its current absence. The temple was built on land filled with sand, and due to its immense size the site was unstable throughout its history. Large portions had probably already collapsed by the time the Buddha was added.
Phimeanakas is a 'celestial temple' @ a Hindu temple in the Khleang style. It was built at the end of the 10th century, during the reign of Rajendravarman (from 941-968), then rebuilt by Suryavarman II in the shape of a three tier pyramid as a Hindu temple. On top of the pyramid there was a tower. According to legend, the king spent the first watch of every night with a woman thought to represent a Naga in the tower, during that time, not even the queen was permitted to intrude. Only in the second watch the king returned to his palace with the queen. If the naga who was the supreme land owner of Khmer land did not show up for a night, the king's day would be numbered, if the king did not show up, calamity would strike his land.
Important to note for those for whises to visit Angkor Thom to pay a necessary visit to the Bayon, Baphuon, Phimeanakas and Elephant Terrace, 4 places.
to be continued....
The first stop of our adventure begun at Angkor Thom. A visit to Siem Reap Angkor would not be complete without a closer view of the famous face towers of the Bayon, said by the scholars, bears a strong resemblance of King Jayavarman VIII. I was lucky that I captured below photo of Cambodian cultural dancers who happened to be there in their national costume with Bayon face as a backdrop.
Angkor Thom literally means a "Great City" of Khmer, the last and most enduring capital city of the empire. It was established in the late 12th century by king Jayavarman VII. It covers an area of 9 km², within which are located several monuments from earlier eras as well as those established by Jayavarman and his successors. The Bayon, has been placed at the centre of the city as Jayavarman's state temple. The other major sites clustered around the Victory Square immediately to the north, established as the centre of Jayavarman VII massive building programme. One inscription found in the city refers to Jayavarman as the groom and the city as his bride. The map of Angkor Thom shared from Wikipedia speaks well about its city.
I was at the South gate, an entrance to the Angkor Thom in below photo. An impressive Angkor Thom, including the gate was constructed in the Bayon style. This manifests itself in the large scale of the construction, in the widespread use of laterite (soil types rich in iron and aluminium, formed due to hot and wet weather of Cambodia), in the face-towers at each of the entrances to the city and in the naga-carrying giant figures which accompany each of the towers. The southern gate has 4 Bayon face overlooking North, East, South and West direction.
Elephant rides are available for those for wishes to explore the ancient city. I have tried once in Jaipur in 2009 and did not enjoy the experience at all as most of the times I was thinking of the pain that those elephant bears to climb the hill and to carry my 54kg weight (plus other passengers too).
Most of the great Angkor ruins have vast displays of bas-relief depicting the various gods, goddesses, and other-worldly beings from the mythological stories and epic poems of ancient Hinduism (modified by centuries of Buddhism, unlike the temples in Jogjakarta. Prambanan Temple is still being preserved as Hindu Temple and Borobudur is a pure dedaction to Buddhism). Mixed with these images are actual known animals, like elephants, snakes, fish, and monkeys, in addition to dragon-like creatures that look like the stylized, elongated serpents (with feet and claws) found in Chinese art. The Khmer sculptors added a common depict of other animals that were commonly seen by the ancient Khmer people in the 12th century.
Angkor Thom is not seems to be the first Khmer capital on the site, it was a Yasodharapura, dating from 3 centuries earlier. Yasodharapura was centred slightly further northwest and Angkor Thom overlapped parts of it. The most notable earlier temples within the city are the former state temple of Baphuon, and Phimeanakas, which was incorporated into the Royal Palace. The Khmers did not draw any clear distinctions between Angkor Thom and Yashodharapura, even in the 14th century an inscription used the earlier name.
We walked to the nearby Baphuon which is still within the site where our driver was waiting for us to bring us to next point, Angkor Wat. At the time of my visit, the Baphuon is still under restoration. 4 years later, in April 2011, after 51 years, the archaeologists finished the restoration of the temple. Baphuon was built in the mid-11th century, it is a three-tiered temple mountain built as the state temple of Udayadityavarman II dedicated to the Hindu God Shiva. It is the archetype of the Baphuon style. The temple adjoins the southern enclosure of the royal palace and measures 120 metres east-west by 100 metres north-south at its base and stands 34 meters tall without its tower, which would have made it roughly 50 meters tall. In the late 15th century, the Baphuon was converted to a Buddhist temple. A 9 meter tall by 70 meter long statue of a reclining Buddha was built on the west side's second level, which probably required the demolition of the 8 meter tower above, thus explaining its current absence. The temple was built on land filled with sand, and due to its immense size the site was unstable throughout its history. Large portions had probably already collapsed by the time the Buddha was added.
Phimeanakas is a 'celestial temple' @ a Hindu temple in the Khleang style. It was built at the end of the 10th century, during the reign of Rajendravarman (from 941-968), then rebuilt by Suryavarman II in the shape of a three tier pyramid as a Hindu temple. On top of the pyramid there was a tower. According to legend, the king spent the first watch of every night with a woman thought to represent a Naga in the tower, during that time, not even the queen was permitted to intrude. Only in the second watch the king returned to his palace with the queen. If the naga who was the supreme land owner of Khmer land did not show up for a night, the king's day would be numbered, if the king did not show up, calamity would strike his land.
The Terrace of the Elephants is part of the walled city of Angkor Thom. The terrace was used by Angkor's king Jayavarman VI as a platform from which to view his victorious returning army. It was attached to the palace of Phimeanakas, of which only a few ruins remain. Most of the original structure was made of organic material and has long since disappeared. Most of what remains are the foundation platforms of the complex. The terrace is named for the carvings of elephants on its eastern face.
The 350m long Terrace of Elephants was used as a giant reviewing stand for public ceremonies and served as a base for the king's grand audience hall. It has five outworks extending towards the Central Square-three in the centre and one at each end. The middle section of the retaining wall is decorated with life size garuda and lions, towards either end are the two parts of the famous parade of elephants complete with their Khmer mahouts.
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| King's Terrace |
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| Awesome views opposite the King's terrace |
Important to note for those for whises to visit Angkor Thom to pay a necessary visit to the Bayon, Baphuon, Phimeanakas and Elephant Terrace, 4 places.
to be continued....
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