Angkor Wat: History of the Ancient Temple

Aerial view of Angkor Wat, showing moat and causeway and central tower surrounded by four smaller towers (? Alexey Stiop | Shutterstock)

Built in 1113 AD Covering approximately 500 acres (200 hectares) between 1150 and 1150, Angkor Wat is one of the largest religious monuments ever built. Its name is the "City of Temples",

Originally built as a Hindu temple for the god Vishnu, it was converted into a Buddhist temple in the 14th century, and Buddha statues were added to its already rich art Good product. Later it was turned into a military fortification. Today, it is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and scientists are working to protect it.

Its 213-foot-tall (65-meter) central tower is surrounded by four smaller towers and a series of walls, a layout that recreates the image of Mount Meru, said to be a Hindu temple A legendary place in mythology, the home of the gods located beyond the Himalayas. The largest city in the world

The city where Angkor Temple is located is located in modern Cambodia and was once the capital of the Khmer Empire. There are hundreds of temples in the city. The population may have exceeded 1 million. Before the Industrial Revolution, Angkor was the largest city in the world.

Angkor has an urban core that could easily accommodate half a million people, and a vast hinterland with many more residents, airborne laser scanning (lidar) research shows. Researchers also discovered a "lost" city called Mahendraparvata, 25 miles (40 kilometers) north of Angkor Wat.

Moats, Towers, Spirals, and Hidden Paintings

Angkor Wat itself is surrounded by a 650-foot-wide (200-meter) moat with a circumference of more than 3 miles (5 kilometer). This moat is 13 feet deep (4 meters) and helps stabilize the temple's foundations, preventing groundwater from rising too high or too low. "KDSPE" "KDSPs" The main entrance to Angkor Wat is from the west (the direction associated with Vishnu) across a stone embankment, with guardian lions marking the way. Recently, archaeologists discovered the remains of eight towers built of sandstone and laterite at the West Gate. These towers may be the remains of shrines that were used before Angkor Wat was fully built. To the east of the temple is the second entrance, which is more simple.

The heart of the temple is the central tower, accessed via a steep staircase, topped by a statue of Vishnu. Researcher Eleanor Mannikka writes in Angkor Wat: The Temple of Heaven of the Khmer Empire (Abbeville, 2002) that the tower "served as both the symbolic center of the country and It is the actual center of union of secular and divine powers.” In this unparalleled space, Vishnu and the king ruled over the Khmer people.

The hidden painting was found in the central tower. There is a scene in one of the rooms in the tower that shows a traditional Khmer instrument ensemble called the flat peat, consisting of different gongs, xylophones, organs and other percussion instruments. In the same room, there is also a complex scene of people riding horses between two buildings, possibly a temple. The two paintings are among 200 discovered at Angkor Wat since 2010.

A mile-long sand structure containing various spiral patterns was recently discovered by archaeologists using lidar next to Angkor Wat. It would exist for a brief period in the mid to late twelfth century. Archaeologists are not sure what it was used for, and it is likely that the building was never completed.

The remains of houses and ponds used by workers who lived near Angkor Wat and provided services to the temple were also recently discovered in lidar studies. It is a relief sculpture showing the Hindu deity, pulling up the story of Vasuki, the snake, from the churning sea of ??milk. (BasPhoto Shutterstock) Vishnu and the King

The king of the buil Angkor Wat is named Suryavarman II. As a usurper, he came to power as a teenager when, riding an elephant, he killed his uncle Dharannidravarman I. One inscription states that Suryavarman killed the man "because a bird on the cliff would kill a snake."

Suryavarman's bloodlust would continue into his lifetime During his reign; he launched an attack into Vietnam in an attempt to gain control of the territory. He also made progress through peaceful diplomacy and reopened relations with China.

He revered the god Vishnu, a god often depicted as a protector, and installed a statue of the god in the central tower of Angkor Wat. This devotion can also be seen in one of the most striking reliefs at Angkor Wat, located to the southeast of the temple. The "Relief" is a chapter in the Hindu story known as "The Turning of the Sea of ??Milk." Archaeologist Michael Coe writes: "KDSPE" "KDSPs", "Reliefs" describe how Devas (gods) and Asuras (demons) under the auspices of Vishnu churned the ocean to produce the elixir of immortality, "(Angkor and the Khmer Civilization). Thames and Hudson, 2003). Scholars consider this relief to be one of the finest works of art at Angkor Wat.

Suryavarman's devotion to Vishnu is also reflected in his posthumous name "Paramavishnuloka", which, according to researcher Hélène Legendre De Koninck, means "He who was in Vishnu" The highest residence of Senu" ("Angkor Wat: A Royal Temple", VDG, Construction Technology

Building Angkor Wat was a huge undertaking involving quarrying, elaborate artistic work and Massive excavation. To build the moat around the temple, 1.5 million cubic meters (53 million cubic feet) of sand and silt were removed, a task that required thousands of people working simultaneously

Angkor Wat. The architecture presented their own challenges, using a hard material called laterite, which in turn was encased in the softer sandstone blocks used to carve the reliefs. The blocks were quarried in the Kulen Hills. , located about 18 miles (30 kilometers) to the north. Research shows that a series of canals were used to transport the stones to Angkor Wat, and beneath the central tower was a shaft that led to a burial chamber. , where in 1934 archaeologists found "two crystals and two gold leaves, well below where the statue of Vishnu was," Coe writes, plus "spiritual 'energy' like these The deposits of a temple, like a battery, will power a portable electronic device." A banyan tree grows at the entrance to Angkor Wat. (David Davis Schutterstock) Purpose

Although Angkor Wat was built to honor Vishnu, one question remains as to whether the ashes of Suryavarman II were buried within the monument, perhaps after the deposits were discovered. In the same tomb. If so, it would give the temple a funerary significance. "KdSPE" Elinor Malnkka pointed out that Angkor Wat is located at 13.41 degrees north latitude and the north-south axis of the central tower is 13.43 cubits. Long. Manika believes that this is no accident. "In the central sanctuary, Vishnu is not only located at the latitude of Angkor Wat, he is also placed on the axis of the earth," she writes, noting that Khmer knew. The Earth is Round. "KDSPE" "KDSPs" Additionally, in her writing, Manika noted that the twelve moons were aligned with the towers of Angkor Wat, indicating that it played an astronomical role in Cambodia. On long, clear nights, when stars filled every inch of the dark sky, astronomers and priests stood on the long west causeway and recorded the movement of the moon on the two towers at the top of the temple. >

Additional Resources Angkor Wat is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, which recognizes sites of cultural, historical and natural significance. The Cambodia Tourism Board has information and travel tips on the Angkor Wat temple.

Street View of Angkor Wat and other Cambodian temples on Google Maps