Angkorian builders used brick, sandstone,

laterite and wood as their materials. The

ruins that remain are of brick, sandstone
and laterite, the wood elements having been
lost to decay and other destructive
processes.

The 12th century temple of Angkor Wat

is the masterpiece of Angkorian
architecture. Constructed under the
direction of the Khmer king
Suryavarman II, it was to serve as the
monarch's personal mausoleum and as a
temple to the Hindu god Vishnu. It was
designed as a pyramid representing the
structure of the universe: the highest
level at the center of the temple
represented Mount Meru, the home of
the Hindu gods, with the five towers on
the highest level representing the five
peaks of the mountain. The broad moat
around the complex represented the
oceans that surround the world.

Gallery

A cruciform gallery separates

the courtyards at Angkor Wat.

A gallery is a passageway running

along the wall of an enclosure or
along the axis of a temple, often open
to one or both sides. Historically, the
form of the gallery evolved during the
10th century from the increasingly
long hallways which had earlier been
used to surround the central
sanctuary of a temple. During the
period of Angkor Wat in the first half
of the 12th century, additional half
galleries on one side were introduced
to buttress the structure of the
temple.

Gopura

A gopura leads into the 12th

century temple compound at
Ta Prohm.

A gopura is an entrance building. At

Angkor, passage through the
enclosure walls surrounding a temple
compound is frequently accomplished
by means of an impressive gopura,
rather than just an aperture in the
wall or a doorway. Enclosures
surrounding a temple are often
constructed with a gopura at each of
the four cardinal points. In plan,
gopuras are usually cross-shaped and
elongated along the axis of the
enclosure wall; if the wall is
constructed with an accompanying
gallery, the gallery is sometimes
connected to the arms of the gopura.
Many Angkorian gopuras have a
tower at the centre of the cross.

Gopura

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.

A gopura is an entrance building. At

Angkor, passage through the
enclosure walls surrounding a temple
compound is frequently accomplished
by means of an impressive gopura,
rather than just an aperture in the
wall or a doorway. Enclosures
surrounding a temple are often
constructed with a gopura at each of
the four cardinal points. In plan,
gopuras are usually cross-shaped and
elongated along the axis of the
enclosure wall; if the wall is
constructed with an accompanying
gallery, the gallery is sometimes
connected to the arms of the gopura.
Many Angkorian gopuras have a
tower at the centre of the cross.

A gopura leads into the 12th

century temple compound at Ta
Prohm.

Library

Unusually, the libraries at

Angkor Wat open to both
the East and the West.

Structures conventionally known as

"libraries" are a common feature of
Khmer temple architecture, but their
true purpose remains unknown. Most
likely they functioned broadly as
religious shrines rather than strictly
as repositories of manuscripts.
Freestanding buildings, they were
normally placed in pairs on either
side of the entrance to an enclosure,
opening to the west

Srah and baray

Srahs and barays were reservoirs,
generally created by excavation and
embankment respectively. It is not
clear whether the significance of
these reservoirs was religious,
agricultural, or a combination of the
two.

The two largest reservoirs at Angkor

were the West Baray and the East
Baray, located on either side of
Angkor Thom. The East Baray is now
dry. The West Mebon is an 11th
century temple standing at the center
of the West Baray; the East Mebon a
10th century temple standing at the
center of the East Baray

West Baray Resevoir

East Baray Reservoir

Built around the year 900 A.D and

fed by the Siem Reap river this now
dried up resevoir measuring
approximately 7.1km long by 1.7km
wide and holding close to 50 million
cubic meters of water was a
incredible feat of engineering given
its age of construction. Even more
intriguing is perhaps the actual
original purpose of it, although some
theories conclude that its main
function was for irrigation, no
inscription have been found
mentioning that it served such a role.
In the centre of this once vast
expanse of water can be found the

The Bakong is the earliest

surviving Temple Mountain at
Angkor.

The dominant scheme for the

construction of state temples in the
Angkorian period was that of the
Temple Mountain, an architectural
representation of Mount Meru, the
home of the gods in Hindu mythology.
[
The style was influenced by Indian
temple architecture. Enclosures
represented the mountain chains
surrounding Mount Meru, while a
moat represented the ocean. The
temple itself took shape as a pyramid
of several levels, and the home of the
gods was represented by the elevated
sanctuary at the center of the temple.
The first great Temple Mountain was
the Bakong, a five-level pyramid
dedicated in 881 A.D. by King
Indravarman I. Other Khmer Temple
Mountains include Baphuon, Pre Rup,

Elements
Bas-relief
Bas-reliefs are individual figures, groups of figures, or entire scenes cut
into stone walls, not as drawings but as sculpted images projecting
from a background. Sculpture in bas-relief is distinguished from
sculpture in haut-relief, in that the latter projects farther from the
background, in some cases almost detaching itself from it. The
Angkorian Khmer preferred to work in bas-relief, while their neighbors
the Cham were partial to haut-relief.
Narrative bas-reliefs are bas-reliefs depicting stories from mythology or
history. Until about the 11th century A.D., the Angkorian Khmer
confined their narrative bas-reliefs to the space on the tympana above
doorways. The most famous early narrative bas-reliefs are those on the
tympana at the 10th century temple of Banteay Srei, depicting scenes
from Hindu mythology as well as scenes from the great works of Indian
literature, the Ramayana and the Mahabharata. By the 12th century,
however, the Angkorian artists were covering entire walls with narrative
scenes in bas-relief. At Angkor Wat, the external gallery wall is covered
with some 12,000 or 13,000 square meters of such scenes, some of
them historical, some mythological. Similarly, the outer gallery at the
Bayon contains extensive bas-reliefs documenting the everyday life of

A bas-relief in a tympanum at Banteay

Srei shows Indra releasing the rains in an
attempt to extinguish the fire created by

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.

Blind door and

window
Angkorean shrines
frequently opened in
only one direction,
typically to the East.
The other three
sides featured fake
or blind doors to
maintain symmetry.
Blind windows were
often used along
otherwise blank
walls
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.

Colonett
es
Colonette
s were
narrow
decorativ
e
columns
that
served as
supports
for the
beams
and
lintels
above
doorways
or
windows.

Corbelling
Angkorian engineers tended to use
the corbel arch in order to construct
rooms, passageways and openings in
buildings. A corbel arch is constructed
by adding layers of stones to the walls
on either side of an opening, with
each successive layer projecting
further towards the centre than the
one supporting it from below, until the
two sides meet in the middle. The
corbel arch is structurally weaker than
the true arch, of which the Angkorian
engineers appear to have been
ignorant. The use of corbelling
prevented the Angkorian engineers
from constructing large openings or
spaces in buildings roofed with stone,
and made such buildings particularly
prone to collapse once they were no
longer maintained. These difficulties
did not, of course, exist for buildings
constructed with stone walls
surmounted by a light wooden roof.
The problem of preventing the
Corbelled arch
collapse of corbelled structures at
Angkor Thom.

at the south gate of

Corbelled hallway at Ta Prohm.

Lintel, pediment, and tympanum

A lintel is a horizontal beam connecting two
vertical columns between which runs a door or
passageway. Because the Angkorean Khmer
lacked the ability to construct a true arch, they
constructed their passageways using lintels or
corbelling. A pediment is a roughly triangular
structure above a lintel. A tympanum is the
decorated surface of a pediment.
The styles employed by Angkorean artists in the
decoration of lintels evolved over time, as a
result, the study of lintels has proven a useful
guide to the dating of temples. Some scholars
have endeavored to develop a periodization of
lintel styles

Lintel and pediment at Banteay Srei;

the motif on the pediment is Shiva
Nataraja.

Angkorean stairs are notoriously steep.

Frequently, the length of the riser
exceeds that of the tread, producing an
angle of ascent somewhere between 45
and 70 degrees. The reasons for this
peculiarity appear to be both religious
and monumental. From the religious
perspective, a steep stairway can be
interpreted as a "stairway to heaven,"
the realm of the gods. "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

Stairs

The stairs leading to the inner

enclosure at Angkor Wat are
daunting.

Motifs
Apsara and devata
Apsaras, divine nymphs or celestial
dancing girls, are characters from Indian
mythology. Their origin is explained in the
story of the churning of the Ocean of Milk,
or samudra manthan, found in the great
epic Mahabharata. 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 widespread use of apsaras as
a motif for decorating the walls and pillars
of temples and other religious buildings,
however, was a Khmer innovation. In
modern descriptions of Angkorian temples,
the term "apsara" is sometimes used to
refer not only to dancers but also to other
minor female deities, though minor female
deities who are depicted standing about
rather than dancing are more commonly

Apsaras and devatas are

ubiquitous at Angkor, but
are most common in the
foundations of the 12th
century. Depictions of true
(dancing) apsaras are found,
for example, in the
Hall of Dancers at
Preah Khan, in the pillars
that line the passageways
through the outer gallery of
the Bayon, and in the
famous bas-relief of
Angkor Wat depicting the
churning of the Ocean of
Milk. The largest population
of devatas (around 2,000) is
at Angkor Wat, where they
appear individually and in

Three apsaras appear on this pillar

at the 12th century Buddhist
temple the Bayon.

Apsaras (left) and a devata (right)

grace the walls at Banteay Kdei.

Dvarapala

Dvarapalas are human or

demonic temple
guardians, generally
armed with lances and
clubs. They are presented
either as a stone statues
or as relief carvings in the
walls of temples and
other buildings, generally
close to entrances or
passageways. Their
function is to protect the
temples. Dvarapalas may
be seen, for example, at
Preah Ko, Lolei,
Banteay Srei, Preah Khan
and Banteay Kdei.

This dvarapala stands guard at

Banteay Kdei.

Garuda is a
divine
being that
is part man
and part
bird. He is
the lord of
birds, the
mythologia
l enemy of
ngas, and
the battle
steed of
Vishnu.
Depictions
of Garuda
at Angkor
number in
the
thousands,
and though
Indian in
inspiration
exhibit a
style that is
uniquely

Garuda

In this 9th century lintel now on

display at the Muse Guimet, Garuda
bears Vishnu on his shoulders.

GARUDA are classified as:

As part of a narrative bas relief, Garuda is shown as the battle steed of Vishnu or
Krishna, bearing the god on his shoulders, and simultaneously fighting against
the god's enemies. Numerous such images of Garuda may be observed in the
outer gallery of Angkor Wat.

Garuda serves as an atlas supporting a superstructure, as in the bas relief at

Angkor Wat that depicts heaven and hell. Garudas and stylized mythological
lions are the most common atlas figures at Angkor.

Garuda is depicted in the pose of a victor, often dominating a nga, as in the

gigantic relief sculptures on the outer wall of Preah Khan. In this context, Garuda
symblizes the military power of the Khmer kings and their victories over their
enemies. Not coincidentally, the city of Preah Khan was built on the site of King
Jayavarman VII's victory over invaders from Champa.

In free-standing nga sculptures, such as in nga bridges and balustrades, Garuda

is often depicted in relief against the fan of nga heads. The relationship between
Garuda and the nga heads is ambiguous in these sculptures: it may be one of
cooperation, or it may again be one of domination of the nga by Garuda.

Kala
The kala is a ferocious
monster symbolic of time
in its all-devouring aspect
and associated with the
destructive side of the god
Siva.
In Khmer temple
architecture, the kala
serves as a common
decorative element on
lintels, tympana and walls,
where it is depicted as a
monstrous head with a
large upper jaw lined by
large carnivorous teeth,
but with no lower jaw.
Some kalas are shown
disgorging vine-like plants,
and some serve as the
base for other figures

A kala serves as the base for a deity

at the 10th century Hindu temple

Ling
a
The linga is a phallic post or cylinder
symbolic of the god Shiva and of
creative power.[36] As a religious
symbol, the function of the linga is
primarily that of worship and ritual,
and only secondarily that of
decoration. In the Khmer empire,
certain lingas were erected as
symbols of the king himself, and were
housed in royal temples in order to
express the king's consubstantiality
with Siva.[37] The lingas that survive
The lingas
the Angkorian
periodare
are of
from
the of
Angkorean
period
several different types.
generally
of polished
Some lingas made
are implanted
in flat squarestone.
base
called a yoni, symbolic of the womb.
On the surface of some lingas is engraved the face
of Siva. Such lingas are called mukhalingas.
Some lingas are segmented into three parts: a
square base symbolic of Brahma, an octagonal
middle section symbolic of Vishnu, and a round tip
symbolic of Shiva

This segmented linga from 10th

century Angkor has a square base, an
octogonal middle, and a round tip.

Makara

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. In Khmer temple architecture, the motif of the makara is generally part of a decorative
carving on a lintel, tympanum, or wall. Often the makara is depicted with some other creature, such as a lion or serpent, emerging
from its gaping maw. 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. At Banteay Srei, carvings of makaras disgorging other monsters may be observed on many of the
corners of the buildings.

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.

Nga
Mythical serpents, or ngas, represent an important motif in
Khmer architecture as well as in free-standing sculpture. They
are frequently depicted as having multiple heads, always
uneven in number, arranged in a fan. Each head has a flared
hood, in the manner of a cobra.
Ngas are frequently depicted in Angkorian lintels. The
composition of such lintels characteristically consists in a
dominant image at the center of a rectangle, from which issue
swirling elements that reach to the far ends of the rectangle.
These swirling elements may take shape as either vinelike
vegetation or as the bodies of ngas. Some such ngas are
depicted wearing crowns, and others are depicted serving as
mounts for human riders.
To the Angkorian Khmer, ngas 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. Ngas were also characters in
other well-known legends and stories depicted in Khmer art,
such as the churning of the Ocean of Milk, the legend of the
Leper King as depicted in the bas-reliefs of the Bayon, and the

Mucalinda, the nga 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 A.D.

This multi-headed nga is part of a

decorative lintel from the end of the
9th century.

Nga Bridge

Nga bridges are causeways or true bridges

lined by stone balustrades shaped as ngas.
In some Angkorian nga-bridges, as for
example those located at the entrances to
12th century city of Angkor Thom, the ngashaped balustrades are supported not by
simple posts but by stone statues of gigantic
warriors. These giants are the devas and
asuras who used the nga king Vasuki in
order to the churn the Ocean of Milk in quest
of the amrita or elixir of immortality. The story
of the Churning of the Ocean of Milk or
samudra manthan has its source in Indian
mythology.

Stone Asuras hold the nga Vasuki on a

bridge leading into the 12th century city of
Angkor Thom.

Quincunx

A quincunx is a spatial arrangement of five

elements, with four elements placed as the corners
of a square and the fifth placed in the center. The
five peaks of Mount Meru were taken to exhibit this
arrangement, and Khmer temples was arranged
accordingly in order to convey a symbolic
identification with the sacred mountain. The five
brick towers of the 10th century temple known as
East Mebon, for example, are arranged in the shape
of a quincunx. The quincunx alsoa appears
elsewhere in designs of the Angkorian period, as in
the riverbed carvings of Kbal Spean.

A linga in the form of a quincunx,

set inside a iyon, is carved into the
riverbed at Kbal Spean.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Architecture_of_Cambodia
http://myangkorguide.com/citadels-and-temples/

ARRANGED BY:

ARNOLD A. DABAY
ARCHITECTURE