ANGKORWAT

GOWRI S.
M. ABDULHARISH
NABEEL SOHEIL
NOEL BABU
SIDDHARATH
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• Angkor Wat is a temple complex in Cambodia and is the largest religious monument in
the world,on a site measuring 162.6 hectares (1,626,000 m2; 402 acres).Breaking
from Shaiva tradition (sect of hinduism) of previous kings, Angkor Wat was dedicated
to Vishnu (one of the principal deities of hinduism) for the Khmer Empire.
• As the best-preserved temple at the site, Angkor Wat is the only one to have remained
a significant religious centre since its foundation. The temple is at the top of the high
classical style of Khmer architecture. It is one of the most important pilgrimage sites
for Buddhists in Cambodia and around the world, having played a major role
in converting Cambodia into a Buddhist nation. It has become a symbol of Cambodia,
appearing on its national flag, and is the country's main tourist attraction.
• In 1992 the Angkor complex, which included Angkor Wat, was designated a World
Heritage site by UNESCO and was immediately added to the list of World Heritage in
Danger.

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• Angkor Wat,located at 13°24′45″N 10352′0″E,is a unique combination of the temple mountain,
the standard design for the empire's state temples, the later plan of concentric galleries,
and influences from Orissa and the Chola of Tamil Nadu,India.
• The temple is a representation of Mount Meru, the home of the gods: the central quincunx of
towers symbolizes the five peaks of the mountain, and the walls and moat the surrounding
mountain ranges and ocean.
• Access to the upper areas of the temple was progressively more exclusive,with the Daity
being admitted only to the lowest level.

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• Angkor Wat,or "city temple", lies 6 kilometres from Siem Reap in Cambodia.

• It was built by King Survayarman II in the late 12th century, at a time when Angkor reached the peak of its
influence and power.

• Dedicated to the Hindu god Vishnu, Angkor Wat is the only temple erected under this monarch's rule and
scholars disagree as to whether it was built as his state temple or his funerary tomb.
• It has a unique orientation, unlike other Angkor Temples it is west facing instead of east facing coinciding with
the symbolism between the setting sun and death.
• Works at Angkor Wat seem to have ended soon after the King's death.

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W hile the Europeans were writing at
different times about the discovery
of the "lost city", Angkor Wat and the
other Angkor Temples were already
known to the Buddhist monks that
cared for them from the 15th to the
19th centuries. It is in part thanks to
them that Angkor Wat remains
mostly intact. In the 16th century a
Khmer court returned briefly to
Angkor to restore it as a Buddhist
shrine.

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General plan of Angkor Wat with Detailed plan of thecentral
central structure in themiddle structure

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 After several invasions from the foreign countries and a
weakening of the Khmer empire, the temples of Angkor were
run over by the jungle.
 Sandstone has eroded and the structures have
become weak.
 Bat droppings have also significantly damaged the
temples.
 The Khmer rouge damaged large parts of the temples-
decapitating the Hindu gods etc.
 A popular temple that earned its popularity in Angkor Wat
History just recently":Ta Prohm temple is famous for being
swallowed by giant trees.

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• Angkor Wat is the prime example of the classical style of Khmer architecture the Angkor Wat style to which it
has given its name.
• By the 12th century Khmer architects had become skilled and confident in the use of sandstone (rather than
brick or laterite as the main building material.
• Most of the visible areas are of sandstone blocks, while laterite was used for the outer wall and for hidden
structural parts.
• The binding agent used to join the blocks is yet to be identified, although natural resins or slaked lime have
been suggested.
• The temple attains a classic perfection by the restrained monumentality of its finely balanced elements and
the precise arrangement of its proportions. It is a work of power, unity and style.

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Architecturally, the elements
characteristic of the style include:
the ogival, redented towers shaped
like lotus buds; half galleries to
broaden passageways; axial
galleries connecting enclosures; and
the cruciform terraces which appear
along the main axis of the temple.

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The most noted is Bayon, one of the
most famous Angkorian temples,
with its 216 four-faced Buddha
statues. Angkor Wat history was
forever changed by this move, as
Hinduism is now but a minority
religion in Cambodia.

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There are series of basso-rellevo on
the cloister of Angkor Wat.This is the
most popular one "Churning of the
Ocean of Milk-AngkorWat

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In Angkor Wat, Hindu basso-relievo
exist everywhere.What we see today
has endured years of history.--
Angkor Wat13

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 PLANNING

• Angkor Wat, is a unique combination of the temple mountain and the later plan of concentric galleries, 4
enclosures.
• Angkor Wat occupies a rectangular area of about 208 hectares (500 acres) defined by a laterite wall.
• The first evidence of the site is a moat with a long sandstone causeway crossing it and serving as the
main access to the monument. The moat is 200 meters wide with a perimeter of 5.5 kilometers
• The rectangular outer wall, which measures 1024m by 802m, has a gate on each side, but the main
entrance, a 235m-wide portico richly decorated with carvings and sculptures, is on the western side.

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 PLANNING
• There is a statue of Vishnu, 3.25m in height and hewn from a
single block of sandstone, located in the southeast tower.

• An avenue, 475m long and 9.5m wide and lined with naga
balustrades, leads from the main entrance to the central temple,
passing between two graceful libraries and then two pools, the
northern one a popular spot from which to watch the sun rise.
• The central temple complex consists of three storeys, each made
of laterite, access is progressively more exclusive,which
enclose a square surrounded by intricately interlinked galleries.

• The corners of the second and third storeys are marked by

towers, each topped with symbolic lotus-bud towers. The stairs
to the upper level are immensely steep, because reaching the
kingdom of the gods was no easy task. 16
 FEATURES

1.OUTER ENCLOSURE
The outer wall, 1,024 m by 802 m and 4.5 m high, is surrounded by a 30 m apron
of open ground and a moat190 m wide . Access to the temple is by an earth bank
to the east and as stone causeway to the west; the latter, the main entrance, is a
later addition, possibly replacing a wooden bridge . The ponds are later additions
to the design, as is the cruciform terrace guarded by lions connecting the
causeway to the central structure.

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 FEATURES

2.CENTRAL STRUCTURE
The temple stands on a terrace raised higher than the city. It is made of three
rectangular galleries rising to a central tower ,each level higher than the last. It
interprets these galleries as being dedicated to the king, Brahma, the moon, and
Vishnu . Each gallery has a gopura at each of the points, and the two inner
galleries each have towers at their corners, forming a quincunx with the central
tower . Because the temple faces west, the features are all set back towards the
east, leaving more space to be filled in each enclosure and gallery on the west
side; for the same reason the west-facing steps are shallower than those on the
other sides.

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3. DECORATION
Integrated with the architecture of the building, and one of the causes for its fame is Angkor Wat’s extensive decoration, which predominantly takes the
form of bas-relief friezes .
The inner walls of the outer gallery bear a series of large-scale scenes mainly depicting episodes from the Hindu epics the Ramayana and the
Mahabharata .
On the eastern gallery is one of the most celebrated scenes, the Churning of the Sea of Milk, showing 92 asuras and 88 devas using the serpent Vasuki to
churn the sea under Vishnu's direction .
It is followed by Vishnu defeating asuras (a 16th-century).The northern gallery shows Krishna's victory over Bana and a battle between the Hindu gods
and asuras . The north-west and south-west corner pavilions both feature much smaller-scale scenes, some unidentified but most from the Ramayana or
the life of Krishna.

Battle of Lanka Battle of Kurukshetra The Grand Army Heavens and Hells

Battle of Gods and Victory of Vishnu over Victory of Krishna Churning of the sea of milk
Demons Asuras
STRUCTURE AND LAYOUT

SANCTUARY

Built on 3 levels. First level consists of an open gallery, with the inner wall continuously covered with bas-relief
depicting scenes from the Mahabharata, the Ramayana and other stories from the Hindu pantheon.

A flight of stairs leads to the second level which is less ornate, and a very steep stairway leads up to the top level
with its central sanctuary.
 SECTION
• The temple stands on a terrace raised higher than the city.

• The base of Angkor Wat was built on ground leveled with

sand and clay. Laterite was then used to create the
pyramid-like base structure which was filled with sand.

• This was then capped with sandstone from which the

structures rose.
• The platform is made of three rectangular galleries rising
to a central tower, each level higher than the last. The
two inner galleries each have four large towers at
their ordinal corners (that is, NW, NE, SE and SW)
surrounding a higher fifth tower.

• This pattern is sometimes called a quincunx and

represents the mountains of Meru.

• Because the temple faces west, the features are all set
back towards the east, leaving more space to be filled in
each enclosure and gallery on the west side; for the
same reason the west-facing steps are shallower than
those on the other sides.
• The entry gopura and outer gallery (1), Preah Poan (2),
second-level and galleried enclosure (3), then the third
level or Bakan (4) with its large central tower and
smaller tower at each corner.

• The second-level enclosure is 100 m (330 ft) by 115 m

(377 ft), and may originally have been flooded to
represent the ocean around Mount Meru.[63] Three sets of
steps on each side lead up to the corner towers and
gopuras of the inner gallery.
TEMPLE TOWERS
THANK YOU