Khmer architecture was a unique style of building, which culminated in the creation of some of the greatest religious monuments the world has ever known. Like many other aspects of their culture, the Cambodians inherited [L3 204 / Indian methods of architecture] and then absorbed them into their own architectural style. Once the [I 001 / Indian influence] on the kingdom was no longer significant, by the seventh to eighth centuries AD, Khmer architecture began to develop independently. It flourished under ambitious kings who ruled an empire rich in manpower and wealth. Both these factors were essential in bringing about the larger building projects undertaken at Angkor in the 11th and 12th centuries.
RELIGIOUS INFLUENCE ON ARCHITECTURE:
The Hindu religion played a vital part in the development of the Khmer temple. This religion became established in Cambodia by the second or third century and temples were built to honor Hindu gods.
It was Jayavarman II (c. AD800 to AD850) who introduced the cult of [L3 206 / devaraja] into Cambodia, establishing the king as a representative of the Hindu god [G 29 / Siva]. From this time temples were being built to honor both the god and the king. During the next two reigns, the practice of each new king building his own temple which became his tomb on his death, was firmly established.
It was also Jayavarman II who made the first attempt at a [L3 207 / M 013 / pyramid temple], imitating the cosmic mountain of Hindu mythology, Mount Meru. This form would gradually evolve over the next 350 years to its most complex and brilliant creation, the Temple of [L3 211 / M 006 / Angkor Wat].
THE FORMATION OF TEMPLE COMPLEXES:
[L3 301 / Banteai Srei Temple] was also significant in the evolution of Khmer architecture as the first temple complex. It was a well planned and well laid out series of buildings surrounding several central shrines.
These buildings were set around courtyards, and each courtyard was linked by avenues. The less important buildings were located at the outer edges of the complex, with the most important ones and the shrines in the center.
The whole complex was surrounded by a moat. This area was inhabited by several priests who tended the shrines and performed the religious rituals of worship. Gradually this form would evolve to the massive complexes of [L3 212 / Angkor Wat], [L3 302 / Ta Prohm], and [L3 303 / M 009 / the Bayon], in which thousands of priests would live.
Hinduism had one other important contribution to the temples which the Khmers built. From the seventh century onwards, Khmer temples began to be decorated with beautiful carvings. The Khmers had long ago perfected the art of carving both statues and [G 05 / bas-relief] in wood, and they transferred this art into stone. Hindu gods were often the subject of these carvings and stories from the great Hindu epics, particularly the [G 20 / Mahabharata] and the [G 28 / Ramayana] were brilliantly portrayed in bas-relief carvings on the walls of the Khmer temples.
Particularly fine examples of this art can be seen at Banteai Srei Temple, finished in AD968, in [L3 304 / Baphuon] Temple built by Udayadityavarman II in the mid-11th century, and at [L3 213 / M 006 / Angkor Wat], built in the first half of the 12th century.
THE CITIES:
The Angkor temples that remain today are spread over a large area which representing various cities built by successive kings.
Yasovarman I (AD889 - AD890) was the first king to build his capital at Angkor, just outside today's town of Siem Reap. He called it Yasodharapura and it was the beginnings of Angkor as a city and capital.
Suryavarman I laid out a new city of Angkor during the first half of the 11th century, some of which is recognizable in the remains of the later city of Angkor Thom, built by Jayavarman VII (1181 - 1220). Suryavarman's Angkor was a carefully planned system of plazas, avenues, temples, terraces and causeways in which he, his court and nobility lived. The city was irrigated by a series of canals and large reservoirs called [G 04 / barays], a program begun under Indravarman I (c. AD877 - AD 889). This [L3 208 / irrigation system] was vital for supplying a growing population and for agriculture and it was one of the most important factors contributing to the expansion of the city.
BUILDING MATERIALS:
Originally, all buildings in Cambodia including temples were made of wood. Obviously none of these have survived until today, but they were probably built in much the same way as the later simple brick temples.
Bricks of a high quality were manufactured in Cambodia from early Funan times, but very little stone was available. These temples dating from around the sixth century were little more than single brick towers with one door. The doorway was often made of stone which was carved with simple designs. Inside was a small room in which was kept the statue representing the god, usually [G 29 / Siva] or [G 34 / Vishnu].
Between the ninth and 13th centuries, [G 17 / laterite] and sandstone were the chief building materials. Laterite is a soft stone which can be easily cut and dries in the sun into a very hard material. It is not easily carved and was used by the Khmers for strong foundations and city walls.
During the seventh and eighth centuries larger temples were built. The stone doorways of these larger temples were carved for decoration. Sandstone was much more readily available in the Kingdom of Chenla which had access to hills where the stone could be quarried. While bricks make a solid foundation, it is impossible to carve them. Sandstone is very easily carved, and already by the seventh century, carvings of good quality and detail were being executed on the [G 19 / lintels] of these early temple doorways, for example at the temples of Sambor Prei Kuk, south of Angkor. Towards the end of this period, some small temples were being built entirely of stone. Some of these tall single tower temples survive in parts of [G 16 / Indo-China] including Cambodia.
ARCHITECTURAL DIFFICULTIES AND
METHODS TO OVERCOME THESE PROBLEMS:
Khmer building evolved from the single brick tower to the vast pyramid temples of Angkor Wat and the Bayon. There were, however, significant problems which the architects had to overcome and some of their building methods contributed to the early collapse of their temples.
Sandstone blocks were prepared carefully to fit together, but vertical joints were allowed to run on top of one another making walls very unstable. So, often a whole wall fell if one stone near the base became dislodged. No mortar was used; just a good fit, weight and gravity was thought sufficient.
The Khmers never learnt how to build an arch. European architects who built the vaulted Gothic cathedrals (SEE CHARTRES) used complex arches to cover a space, a technique which had been handed down to them from the Romans over centuries of development.
The Khmers had no such example to copy. In order to overcome this difficulty, they used the false arch, or [G 09 / corbelling]. Large stones were piled on top of one another, reaching inwards as far as possible and touching at the top. An arched roof over a space was thus formed, but it was not as stable as the real arch, and these vaults often collapsed in the centuries after Angkor was abandoned.
