Written by John Lounsbury
Angkor Wat was built in what is now a Cambodian jungle in the first half of the 12th century (between 1113 and 1150 AD. It was built in one of the largest cities in the world at the time, Angkor, with a population over 1 million people. Founded in the late 9th century, it was the capital city of the Khmer empire which stretched from southern Vietnam, through parts of Laos and Thailand into eastern Myanmar. Angkor Wat is the largest religious edifice ever erected in the history of the world.
Please share this article – Go to very top of page, right hand side, for social media buttons.
The caption image above and the larger view below are from https://www.britannica.com/ which has 13 more graphics on the subject.
Angkor Wat was originally built as a Hindu temple but was used by Bhuddists after the first approximately 150 years.
From Wikipedia:
Angkor Wat (/ËŒaeÅ‹kÉ”Ër ˈwÉ’t/; Khmer: អង្គរវážáŸ’áž, “City/Capital of Temples”) is a temple complex in Cambodia and the largest religious monument in the world,[1] on a site measuring 162.6 hectares (1,626,000 m2; 402 acres).[2] Originally constructed as a Hindu temple[1] dedicated to the god Vishnu for the Khmer Empire, it was gradually transformed into a Buddhist temple towards the end of the 12th century as such it is also described as a “Hindu-Buddhist” temple.[3][4] It was built by the Khmer King Suryavarman II[5] in the early 12th century in YaÅ›odharapura (Khmer: យសោធរបុរៈ, present-day Angkor), the capital of the Khmer Empire, as his state temple and eventual mausoleum. Breaking from the Shaiva tradition of previous kings, Angkor Wat was instead dedicated to Vishnu. As the best-preserved temple at the site, it is the only one to have remained a significant religious centre since its foundation. The temple is at the top of the high classical style of Khmer architecture. It has become a symbol of Cambodia,[6] appearing on its national flag, and it is the country’s prime attraction for visitors.[7]
Angkor Wat combines two basic plans of Khmer temple architecture: the temple-mountain and the later galleried temple. It is designed to represent Mount Meru, home of the devas in Hindu mythology: within a moat more than 5 kilometres (3 mi) long[8] and an outer wall 3.6 kilometres (2.2 mi) long are three rectangular galleries, each raised above the next. At the centre of the temple stands a quincunx of towers. Unlike most Angkorian temples, Angkor Wat is oriented to the west; scholars are divided as to the significance of this. The temple is admired for the grandeur and harmony of the architecture, its extensive bas-reliefs, and for the numerous devatas adorning its walls.
This video is 49 minutes in length.
Source: YouTube
.
include(“/home/aleta/public_html/files/ad_openx.htm”); ?>