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Prasat Suor Prat
Prasat Suor Prat () is a series of twelve towers spanning north to south lining the eastern side of a royal square in Angkor Thom, near the town of Siem Reap, Cambodia. The towers are made from rugged laterite and sandstone. They are right in front of Terrace of the Elephants and Terrace of the Leper King, flanking the start of the road leading east to the Victory Gate, on either side of which they are symmetrically arranged. Their function remains unknown. The current tower's name in Khmer means "The towers of the tightrope dancers," a romantic idea derived from the local belief that they were used to support a high wire stretched between them for acrobatics during royal festivals. This belief, however, is irrelevant. Zhou Daguan describes in his records that the towers are used to settle disputes among Angkorian people. The temple was possibly built during the reign of Indravarman II.Higham, C., 2001, The Civilization of Angkor, London: Weidenfeld & Nicolson, Among the t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Cambodia
Cambodia, officially the Kingdom of Cambodia, is a country in Southeast Asia on the Mainland Southeast Asia, Indochinese Peninsula. It is bordered by Thailand to the northwest, Laos to the north, and Vietnam to the east, and has a coastline along the Gulf of Thailand in the southwest. It spans an area of , dominated by a low-lying plain and the confluence of the Mekong river and Tonlé Sap, Southeast Asia's largest lake. It is dominated by a tropical climate and is rich in biodiversity. Cambodia has a population of about 17 million people, the majority of which are ethnically Khmer people, Khmer. Its capital and most populous city is Phnom Penh, followed by Siem Reap and Battambang. In 802 AD, Jayavarman II declared himself king, uniting the warring Khmer princes of Chenla Kingdom, Chenla under the name "Kambuja".Chandler, David P. (1992) ''History of Cambodia''. Boulder, CO: Westview Press, . This marked the beginning of the Khmer Empire. The Indianised kingdom facilitated ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Angkor
Angkor ( , 'capital city'), also known as Yasodharapura (; ),Headly, Robert K.; Chhor, Kylin; Lim, Lam Kheng; Kheang, Lim Hak; Chun, Chen. 1977. ''Cambodian-English Dictionary''. Bureau of Special Research in Modern Languages. The Catholic University of America Press. Washington, D.C. Chuon Nath Khmer Dictionary (1966, Buddhist Institute, Phnom Penh). was the capital city of the Khmer Empire, located in present-day Cambodia. The city and empire flourished from approximately the 9th to the 15th centuries. The city houses the Angkor Wat, one of Cambodia's most popular tourist attractions. The name ''Angkor'' is derived from ''nokor'' (), a Khmer language, Khmer word meaning "kingdom" which in turn derived from Sanskrit ''nagara'' (), meaning "city". The Angkorian period began in AD 802, when the Khmer people, Khmer Hinduism, Hindu monarch Jayavarman II declared himself a "universal monarch" and "Devaraja, god-king", and lasted until the late 14th century, first falling under Ayut ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Jayavarman VII
Jayavarman VII (), known posthumously as Mahaparamasaugata (, c. 1122–1218), was king of the Khmer Empire. He was the son of King Dharanindravarman II (r. 1150–1160) and Queen Sri Jayarajacudamani. He was the first king devoted to Buddhism, as only one prior Khmer king had been a Buddhist. He then built the Bayon as a monument to Buddhism. Jayavarman VII is generally considered the most powerful of the Khmer monarchs by historians. His government built many projects including hospitals, highways, rest houses, and temples. With Buddhism as his motivation, King Jayavarman VII is credited with introducing a welfare state that served the physical and spiritual needs of the Khmer people. Defeat of the Cham and coronation In 1177 and again in 1178, the Champa, Cham invaded the Khmer Empire. In 1177, Champa King Jaya Indravarman IV launched a surprise attack on the Khmer capital by sailing a fleet up the Mekong River, across Lake Tonlé Sap, and then up the Siem Reap River, a t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Angkor Thom
Angkor Thom ( ; meaning "Great City"), alternatively Nokor Thom ( ), located in present-day Cambodia, was the last and most enduring capital city of the Khmer empire, Khmer Empire. It was established in the late twelfth century by King Jayavarman VII.Higham, C., 2014, Early Mainland Southeast Asia, Bangkok: River Books Co., Ltd., 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. At the centre of the city is Jayavarman's state temple, the Bayon, with the other major sites clustered around the Victory Square immediately to the north. The site is one of the major tourist attractions of Southeast Asia. Etymology Angkor Thom () is the transform name from another alternative name of Nokor Thom (), which is believed to be the correct one, due to neglect of calling it in incorrect pronunciation. The word ''Nokor'' (, ) is literally derived from Sanskrit word of ''Nagara'' (Devanāgar ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Siem Reap
Siem Reap (, ) is the second-largest city of Cambodia, as well as the capital and largest city of Siem Reap Province in northwestern Cambodia. Siem Reap possesses French-colonial and Chinese-style architecture in the Old French Quarter and around the Old Market. The city is a major hub for tourism in Cambodia due to its close proximity to the ancient temples of Angkor constructed during the Khmer Empire. In and around the city there are museums, traditional Apsara dance performances, a Cambodian cultural village, souvenir and handicraft shops, silk farms, rice paddies in the countryside, fishing villages and a bird sanctuary near Tonlé Sap, and a cosmopolitan drinking and dining scene. Siem Reap was named the ASEAN City of Culture for the period 2021–2022 at the 9th Meeting of the ASEAN Ministers Responsible for Culture and Arts (AMCA) organized on Oct 22, 2020. History The name "Siem Reap" can be translated to mean 'defeat of Siam' (''siem'' in Khmer) and ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Terrace Of The Elephants
The Terrace of the Elephants () is part of the walled city of Angkor Thom, a ruined temple complex in Cambodia. Description The terrace was used by Angkor's king Jayavarman VII 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 350 meter-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 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Terrace Of The Leper King
The Terrace of the Leper King (or Leper King Terrace; ''Preah Lean Sdach Kumlung'') is located in the northwest corner of the Royal Square of Angkor Thom, Cambodia. It was built in the Bayon style under Jayavarman VII, though its modern name is from an 8th-century sculpture discovered at the site. A datable inscription of the 14th-15th century identifies it with ''Dharmaraja'', the "King of the Order", which is an epithet of Yama, the Indic god of death and ruler of the underworld. The statue was called the "Leper King" because discolouration and moss growing on it looked similar to the symptoms of leprosy, connecting it to the Cambodian legend of Angkorian king Yasovarman I having the disease. The name Cambodians know the image as is ''Dharmaraja'', as this is what was etched at the bottom of the original statue. The U-shaped structure is thought by some to have been used as a royal cremation site. Legacy Yukio Mishima's final play before his death in 1970 was . The play ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Khmer Language
Khmer ( ; , Romanization of Khmer#UNGEGN, UNGEGN: ) is an Austroasiatic language spoken natively by the Khmer people. This language is an official language and national language of Cambodia. The language is also widely spoken by Khmer people in Eastern Thailand and Isan, Thailand, as well as in the Southeast (Vietnam), Southeastern and Mekong Delta regions of Vietnam. Khmer has been influenced considerably by Sanskrit and Pali especially in the royal and religious Register (sociolinguistics), registers, through Hinduism and Buddhism, due to Old Khmer being the language of the historical empires of Chenla and Angkorian Empire, Angkor. The vast majority of Khmer speakers speak ''Central Khmer'', the dialect of the central plain where the Khmer are most heavily concentrated. Within Cambodia, regional accents exist in remote areas but these are regarded as varieties of Central Khmer. Two exceptions are the speech of the capital, Phnom Penh, and that of the Khmer Khe in Stung Treng ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Zhou Daguan
Zhou Daguan (; ; c. 1270–?) was a Chinese diplomat of the Yuan dynasty of China, serving under Temür Khan (Emperor Chengzong of Yuan). He is most well known for his accounts of the customs of Cambodia and the Angkor temple complexes during his visit there. He arrived at Angkor in August 1296, and remained at the court of King Indravarman III until July 1297. He was neither the first nor the last Chinese representative to visit the Khmer Empire. However, his stay is notable because he later wrote a detailed report on life in Angkor, '' The Customs of Cambodia'' () . His portrayal is today one of the most important sources of understanding of historical Angkor and the Khmer Empire. Alongside descriptions of several great Buddhist temples, such as the Bayon, the Baphuon, Angkor Wat, and others, the text also offers valuable information on the everyday life and the habits of the inhabitants of Angkor. Biography Zhou was a native of Yongjia, a name often used in Zhou's time for ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Indravarman II
Indravarman II () was the ruler of the Khmer Empire, son of Jayavarman VII.Higham, C., 2001, The Civilization of Angkor, London: Weidenfeld & Nicolson, There is some dispute regarding the actual period of his reign, even because his successor, Jayavarman VIII, probably destroyed historical records about him, but the only inscription which directly mention him reports that he died in 1243.Recently a new Sanskrit inscription was discovered, which could possibly change this datin/ref> He was a Buddhist and was also credited with having enlarged (or completed) some of Jayavarman VII's temple. During his peaceful kingdom, the Khmers lost control of Champa and the newborn Sukhothai Kingdom The Sukhothai Kingdom was a post-classical Siamese kingdom (Mandala (political model), ''maṇḍala'') in Mainland Southeast Asia surrounding the ancient capital city of Sukhothai Historical Park, Sukhothai in present-day north-central Thaila ... under Indraditya took possession of some weste ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
