Henri Parmentier
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Henri Ernest Jean Parmentier (; 3 January 1870 – 22 February 1949) was a French architect, art historian and archaeologist. Parmentier became one of the first European specialists in the archaeology of
Indochina Mainland Southeast Asia (historically known as Indochina and the Indochinese Peninsula) is the continental portion of Southeast Asia. It lies east of the Indian subcontinent and south of Mainland China and is bordered by the Indian Ocean to th ...
. He has documented, depicted and preserved many Khmer, Cham and Lao monuments.


Early years

Henri Ernest was born on 3 January 1870 in Paris; his father was a painter working in ''Lycée de Reims''. In 1891 Parmentier entered the
École nationale supérieure des Beaux-Arts École or Ecole may refer to: * an elementary school in the French educational stages normally followed by secondary education establishments (collège and lycée) * École (river), a tributary of the Seine The Seine ( , ) is a river in nor ...
graduating in 1905 with a diploma in architecture. In 1896 he got employed by the colonial administration in
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and over time he developed a profound interest in archaeology. During this period Parmentier created a detailed plan of the in Dougga to assist with its restoration. This job was awarded with an honourable mention on the exhibition of Société des Artistes Français. In 1900 Parmentier joined archaeologist Henri Dufour and photograph Charles Carpeaux in the Archaeological mission in Indochina (later renamed École française d'Extrême-Orient, also known as EFEO). They went to Siam to study
Angkor Wat Angkor Wat (; , "City/Capital of Wat, Temples") is a Buddhism and Hinduism, Hindu-Buddhist temple complex in Cambodia. Located on a site measuring within the ancient Khmer Empire, Khmer capital city of Angkor, it was originally constructed ...
that had been located on its territory. Khmer monuments were largely unknown to the Westerners and almost uncharted. Studying Khmer history became Parmentier's lifework. In 1902—1905 Parmentier and Carpeaux studied, described, depicted and preserved Cham monuments in Vietnam: a buddhist temple complex Đồng Dương (1902), a Hindu temple complex Mỹ Sơn (1903—1904), the temple (1905) -- the latter was studied by Parmentier alone. The study made from the expedition trip to Đồng Dương was presented by Parmentier and Carpeaux at the Congress of the École française d'Extrême-Orient. Parmentier studied the architecture of Java in order to compare it to Cham architectural styles.


As a head of the École française d'Extrême-Orient

In 1904 Parmentier was appointed the head of the archaeological department of the École; he stayed on this position for 28 years until 1932. Parmentier's duties included defining the main course of the École's work in Cambodia. In 1905 Henri married journalist and writer Jeanne Leuba who travelled with him and took a big part in the fieldwork. Parmentier studied and conserved the Po Nagar Cham temple in 1906—1907. During his next expedition to Cambodia Parmentier depicted and restored Khmer monuments in Serei Saophoan, Battambang Province, Siem Reap Province and
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 Uni ...
, with special attention to
Bayon The Bayon (, ) ( ''BAI-on'') is a richly decorated Khmer temple related to Buddhism at Angkor in Cambodia. Built in the late 12th or early 13th century as the state temple of the King Jayavarman VII (), the Bayon stands at the centre of Jaya ...
. From Cambodia he went to the South of Vietnam and took part in restoring the Po Klong Garai temple (1908). In 1913—1914 Parmentier reorganised the museum of the École française d'Extrême-Orient. He visited Cambodia from time to time, documenting Angkor and Sambor Prei Kuk (1911); he also visited
Kampong Thom city Kampong Thom (), also Krong Kampong Thom, is the capital city of Kampong Thom Province, Cambodia lying on the bank of the Steung Saen River. It is a mid-way stopover on the National Highway 6 (Cambodia), National Highway No 6 halfway between P ...
and
Banteay Prey Nokor Banteay Prei Nokor () is an ancient temple complex in the northwest of Kampong Cham (city), Kompong Cham, Cambodia. Known locally as temple of "Wat Nokor in Khum of Kompong Siem", or "Wat Angkor", around 2 km from the provincial capital Kam ...
. Parmentier studied Chinese tombs in Northern Vietnam in Bắc Ninh Province (), helped creating a permanent exhibition for the Museum of Cham Sculpture that was under construction in Da Nang—in 1936 the museum was renamed after him. He directed the École in 1918—1920. In 1920 Parmentier received an award for his book on Cham architecture. Parmentier visited the ruins of the Lao temple complex Vat Phou, he paid special attention to Krol Roméas (
Phnom Kulen Phnom Kulen (or Kulen Mountain; , ; ) is a mountain range and a part of Phnom Kulen National Park in Siem Reap Province, Cambodia. Geography Rather than a hill range, Phnom Kulen is an isolated chain of small mountain plateaux of moderate heig ...
plateau), Angkor and the
Bayon The Bayon (, ) ( ''BAI-on'') is a richly decorated Khmer temple related to Buddhism at Angkor in Cambodia. Built in the late 12th or early 13th century as the state temple of the King Jayavarman VII (), the Bayon stands at the centre of Jaya ...
temple in particular, which he helped reconstructing. His collaboration with Louis Finot and on Banteay Srei, a Khmer temple complex, was published as a book in 1926.


After retirement

Parmentier retired in 1932 aged 62. He left his position at the École, received a title of the honorary head of the archaeological department and moved to
Phnom Penh Phnom Penh is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Cambodia, most populous city of Cambodia. It has been the national capital since 1865 and has grown to become the nation's primate city and its political, economic, industr ...
. Despite being retired, Parmentier continued his fieldwork and his research working on a descriptive list of important monuments in
Laos Laos, officially the Lao People's Democratic Republic (LPDR), is the only landlocked country in Southeast Asia. It is bordered by Myanmar and China to the northwest, Vietnam to the east, Cambodia to the southeast, and Thailand to the west and ...
and a book titled "The Art of Laos" that he left unfinished. He had created a draft of a tourist guidebook on Angkor monuments, which was published posthumously. Parmentier died on 22 February 1949 in
Phnom Penh Phnom Penh is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Cambodia, most populous city of Cambodia. It has been the national capital since 1865 and has grown to become the nation's primate city and its political, economic, industr ...
.


Selected works

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Notes


References

* * Obituary * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Parmentier, Henri French archaeologists French orientalists École des Beaux-Arts alumni 20th-century Vietnamese historians 1870 births 1949 deaths