Angkor Wat Research

The significance of Angkor Wat

 Angkor in Cambodia’s northern province of Stem Reap is one of
the most important archaeological sites of SE Asia.
 Where it is built was once the capital of the Khmer Empire. It was
built by Khmer King Suryavarman II it was his state temple later
mausoleum, he broke away from Shaiva tradition of previous
kings, Angkor Wat was dedicated to Vishnu.
 Built roughly between AD 1113 and 1150
 Originally built as a Hindu temple dedicated to the god Vishnu
 It was later converted to a Buddhist temple in the 14th Century
and statues of Buddha were added to its rich artwork.
 The heart of the temple was the central tower, entered by a
steep staircase with a statue of Vishnu as the top. This tower was
one the symbolic centre of the nation and the actual centre
where secular and sacred power joined forces.
 It was a representation of the cosmic universe, at the center of
this universe was a monument to Vishnu
 Eleanor Mannikka has noted that Angkor Wat is located at 13.41
degrees north in latitude and that the north-south axis of the
central tower’s chamber is 13.43 cubits long. This, Mannikka
believes, is not an accident. “In the central sanctuary, Vishnu is
not only placed at the latitude of Angkor Wat, he is also placed
along the axis of the earth,” she writes, pointing out that the
Khmer knew the Earth was round.
 The temples of Angkor are highly symbolic structures. The
foremost Hindu concept is the temple-mountain, where the
temple is built as a representation of the mythical Mount Meru:
this is why so many temples, including Angkor Wat itself, are
surrounded by moats, built in a mountain-like pyramidal shape
and topped by precisely five towers, representing the five peaks
of Mount Meru.

How it enhances our understanding of the past

 It is surrounded by a 200m moat that encompasses a perimeter
of more than 5km. It is 4m deep and would help stabilize the
temple foundation preventing groundwater from rising too high
or falling too low. This indicated they had good knowledge of
engineering and construction.
 One chamber in the tower shows a scene of a traditional Khmer
musical ensemble (known as the pinpeat), which is made up of
gongs, xylophones, wind instruments and other percussion
instruments. This demonstrated what music and what their
technology in that area was.
  The building would require enormous amounts of quarrying,
careful artistic work and digging. To create the moat 1.5 million
cubic meters of sand and silt were moved, a task that requires
thousand of people. Sandstone bocks were quarried at the
Kulen Hills 30km north. They were transported via canals.
 Consists of hydraulic structures such as basins, dykes, reservoirs
and canals as well as communication routs. They had large
water reservoirs
 Architecture and layout of the successive capital bear witness to
a high level of social order and ranking within the Khmer Empire.
 Advancement due to water irrigation system

Why you should visit

 Majestic structure
 See history untouched
 Beautiful architecture
 Interesting combination of history and forest growing over it
 Learn about the past interactively
 If timing is correct you enter large silent forests with small temples
 Serene
 Monk rituals-seeing them pray
 Look at their carvings and artwork
 Look at their culture
 Rich heritage (temples) in brick and stone.
Cultural Significance
 This tower “was at once the symbolic center of the nation and
the actual center where secular and sacred power joined
forces- Eleanor Mannikka “From that unparalleled space, Vishnu
and the king ruled over the Khmer people.”
 Angkor Wat is dedicated to Vishnu
 In addition, in her writing, Mannikka notes a dozen lunar
alignments with Angkor Wat’s towers, suggesting that it served
an important astronomical role. “During the long and clear
Cambodian nights, when the stars filled every inch of the black
sky, the astronomer-priests stood on the long western causeway
... and recorded the movements of the moon against the towers
in the top two galleries of the temple.”
 It is both a monument to the past greatness of the Khmer
people, and a source of inspiration and hope in a highly
uncertain future.
 The most impressive of the Angkor structures were built as
physical manifestations of their creators' semi-divine status, and
to demonstrate their power, both to their subjects and their
enemies.
 Constructed in honour of a particular Hindu god - usually Siva or
Vishnu - the temples associated the divine power of their deity
with the person who built it. In the hierarchical universe in which
these nagara states rose and fell, kings occupied a position
somewhere between gods and humans. Their strength was an
indication of their divinity, their divinity an aspect of their power.

Tourism
Cultural signifince
Religion
Technology
Natural beauty unesco criteria
Ancient history