: 81 Another gate-the Victory Gate-is 500 m north of the east gate the Victory Way runs parallel to the east road to the Victory Square and the Royal Palace north of the Bayon. As the Bayon itself has no wall or moat of its own, those of the city are interpreted by archaeologists as representing the mountains and oceans surrounding the Bayon's Mount Meru. There are gates at each of the cardinal points, from which roads lead to the Bayon at the centre of the city. The walls are of laterite buttressed by earth, with a parapet on the top. The walls, 8 m high and flanked by a moat, are each 3 km long, enclosing an area of 9 km². The south gate of Angkor Thom is 7.2 km north of Siem Reap, and 1.7 km north of the entrance to Angkor Wat. The city lies on the west bank of the Siem Reap River, a tributary of Tonle Sap, about a quarter of a mile from the river. This manifests itself in the large scale of the construction, in the widespread use of laterite, in the face-towers at each of the entrances to the city and in the naga-carrying giant figures which accompany each of the towers. ![]() The Poem of Angkor Wat composed in Khmer verse in 1622 describes the beauty of Angkor Thom.Īngkor Thom is in the Bayon style. : 140 It is believed to have sustained a population of 80,000–150,000 people. : 29Īngkor Thom was abandoned some time prior to 1609, when an early western visitor wrote of an uninhabited city, "as fantastic as the Atlantis of Plato". The Ayutthaya Kingdom, led by King Borommarachathirat II, sacked Angkor Thom, forcing the Khmers under Ponhea Yat to relocate their capital southeast to Phnom Penh. Thereafter the existing structures continued to be modified from time to time, but any new creations were in perishable materials and have not survived. The last temple known to have been constructed in Angkor Thom was Mangalartha, which was dedicated in 1295. : 138 The name of Angkor Thom-great city-was in use from the 16th century. The Khmers did not draw any clear distinctions between Angkor Thom and Yashodharapura: even in the fourteenth century an inscription used the earlier name. ![]() The most notable earlier temples within the city are the former state temple of Baphuon, and Phimeanakas, which was incorporated into the Royal Palace. Yasodharapura, dating from three centuries earlier, was centred slightly further northwest, and Angkor Thom overlapped parts of it. : 121Īngkor Thom seems not to be the first Khmer capital on the site, however. One inscription found in the city refers to Jayavarman as the groom and the city as his bride. History Īngkor Thom was established as the capital of Jayavarman VII's empire, and was the centre of his massive building program. The word Nokor ( Khmer: នគរ, Nôkô) is literally derived from Sanskrit word of Nagara ( Devanāgarī: नगर), which means City, combining with Khmer word Thom ( Khmer: ធំ, Thum), which means Big or Great so as to form Nokor Thom then being altered to current name of Angkor Thom. The site is one of the major tourist attractions of southeast Asia.Īngkor Thom ( Khmer: អង្គរធំ) is the transform name from another alternative name of Nokor Thom ( Khmer: នគរធំ), which is believed to be the correct one, due to neglect of calling it in incorrect pronunciation. 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. : 378–382 : 170 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. It was established in the late twelfth century by King Jayavarman VII. ![]() Two rows of figures each carry the body of seven-headed naga.Īngkor Thom ( Khmer: អង្គរធំ meaning "Great City"), alternatively Nokor Thom ( Khmer: នគរធំ ), located in present-day Cambodia, was the last and most enduring capital city of the Khmer Empire. South gate of Angkor Thom along with a bridge of statues of gods and demons.
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