Bakong
Encyclopedia
Bakong is the first temple mountain of sandstone constructed by rulers of the Khmer empire
at Angkor
near modern Siem Reap
in Cambodia
. In the final decades of the 9th century AD, it served as the official state temple of King Indravarman I
in the ancient city of Hariharalaya
, located in an area that today is called Roluos
.
Jayavarman II
declared the sovereignty of Cambodia
. After ups and downs, he established his capital at Hariharalaya
. Few decades later, his successors constructed Bakong in stages as the first temple mountain of sandstone at Angkor
. The inscription on its stele (classified K.826) says that in 881 King Indravarman I
dedicated the temple to the god Shiva
and consecrated its central religious image, a lingam
whose name Sri Indresvara was a combination of the king's own and the suffix "-esvara" which stood for Shiva ("Iśvara"). According to George Coedes
, the devarāja
cult consisted in the idea of divine kingship as a legitimacy of royal power, but later authors stated that it doesn't necessarily involve the cult of physical persona of the ruler himself.
Bakong enjoyed its status as the state temple of Angkor for only a few years, but later additions from the 12th or 13th centuries testify that it was not abandoned. Toward the end of the 9th century, Indravarman's son and successor Yasovarman I moved the capital from Hariharalaya to the area north of Siem Reap
now known as Angkor
, where he founded the new city of Yasodharapura
around a new temple mountain called Bakheng
.
leads at the edge of the second enclosure. The inner moat delimits a 400 by 300 meters area, with remains of a laterite wall and four cruciform gopuras, and it is crossed by a wide earthen causeway, flanked by seven-headed nāga
s, such as a draft of nāga bridge . Between the two moats there are the remains of 22 satellite temples of brick. The innermost enclosure, bounded by a laterite wall, measures 160 meters by 120 meters and contains the central temple pyramid and eight brick temple towers, two on each side. A number of other smaller buildings are also located within the enclosure. Just outside of the eastern gopura there is a modern buddhist temple.
The pyramid itself has five levels and its base is 65 by 67 meters. It was reconstructed by Maurice Glaize at the end of the 1930s according to methods of anastylosis
. On the top there is a single tower that is much later in provenance, and the architectural style of which is not that of the 9th century foundations of Hariharalaya, but that of the 12th century temple city Angkor Wat
.
Though the pyramid at one time must have been covered with bas relief carvings in stucco, today only fragments remain. A dramatic scene-fragment involving what appear to be asuras in battle gives a sense of the likely high quality of the carvings. Large stone statues of elephants are positioned as guardians at the corners of the three lower levels of the pyramid. Statues of lions guard the stairways.
Khmer Empire
The Khmer Empire was one of the most powerful empires in Southeast Asia. The empire, which grew out of the former kingdom of Chenla, at times ruled over and/or vassalized parts of modern-day Laos, Thailand, Vietnam, Burma, and Malaysia. Its greatest legacy is Angkor, the site of the capital city...
at Angkor
Angkor
Angkor is a region of Cambodia that served as the seat of the Khmer Empire, which flourished from approximately the 9th to 15th centuries. The word Angkor is derived from the Sanskrit nagara , meaning "city"...
near modern Siem Reap
Siem Reap
Siem Reap is the capital city of Siem Reap Province in northwestern Cambodia, and is the gateway to Angkor region.Siem Reap has colonial and Chinese-style architecture in the Old French Quarter, and around the Old Market...
in Cambodia
Cambodia
Cambodia , officially known as the Kingdom of Cambodia, is a country located in the southern portion of the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia...
. In the final decades of the 9th century AD, it served as the official state temple of King Indravarman I
Indravarman I
Indravarman I was a ruler of Khmer Empire who reigned from Hariharalaya between 877/78 and 889/890 AD.-Indravarman's ancestors:According to the inscriptions of the Práḥ Kô temple, consecrated on Monday, the 25th January 880 AD Indravarman I was a ruler of Khmer Empire who reigned from Hariharalaya...
in the ancient city of Hariharalaya
Hariharalaya
Hariharalaya was an ancient city and capital of the Khmer empire located near Siem Reap, Cambodia in an area now called Roluos. Today, all that remains of the city are the ruins of several royal temples: Preah Ko, the Bakong, Lolei.-Etymology:...
, located in an area that today is called Roluos
Roluos
Roluos is a khum of Svay Chek District in Banteay Meanchey Province in north-western Cambodia.-Villages:* Baek Chan Thmei* Khvav Kaeut* Stueng* Ta Ong Kaeut* Slaeng* Roluos* Ta Sman-References:...
.
History
In 802 AD, the first king of AngkorAngkor
Angkor is a region of Cambodia that served as the seat of the Khmer Empire, which flourished from approximately the 9th to 15th centuries. The word Angkor is derived from the Sanskrit nagara , meaning "city"...
Jayavarman II
Jayavarman II
Jayavarman II was a 9th century king of Cambodia, widely recognized as the founder of the Khmer Empire, which ruled much of the Southeast Asian mainland for more than six hundred years. Historians formerly dated his reign as running from 802 AD to 850 AD, but some scholars now have set it back to...
declared the sovereignty of Cambodia
Cambodia
Cambodia , officially known as the Kingdom of Cambodia, is a country located in the southern portion of the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia...
. After ups and downs, he established his capital at Hariharalaya
Hariharalaya
Hariharalaya was an ancient city and capital of the Khmer empire located near Siem Reap, Cambodia in an area now called Roluos. Today, all that remains of the city are the ruins of several royal temples: Preah Ko, the Bakong, Lolei.-Etymology:...
. Few decades later, his successors constructed Bakong in stages as the first temple mountain of sandstone at Angkor
Angkor
Angkor is a region of Cambodia that served as the seat of the Khmer Empire, which flourished from approximately the 9th to 15th centuries. The word Angkor is derived from the Sanskrit nagara , meaning "city"...
. The inscription on its stele (classified K.826) says that in 881 King Indravarman I
Indravarman I
Indravarman I was a ruler of Khmer Empire who reigned from Hariharalaya between 877/78 and 889/890 AD.-Indravarman's ancestors:According to the inscriptions of the Práḥ Kô temple, consecrated on Monday, the 25th January 880 AD Indravarman I was a ruler of Khmer Empire who reigned from Hariharalaya...
dedicated the temple to the god Shiva
Shiva
Shiva is a major Hindu deity, and is the destroyer god or transformer among the Trimurti, the Hindu Trinity of the primary aspects of the divine. God Shiva is a yogi who has notice of everything that happens in the world and is the main aspect of life. Yet one with great power lives a life of a...
and consecrated its central religious image, a lingam
Lingam
The Lingam is a representation of the Hindu deity Shiva used for worship in temples....
whose name Sri Indresvara was a combination of the king's own and the suffix "-esvara" which stood for Shiva ("Iśvara"). According to George Coedes
George Coedès
Georges Cœdès was a 20th century scholar of southeast Asian archaeology and history. Coedès was born in Paris to a family of supposed Hungarian-Jewish emigres. In fact, the family was known as having settled in the region of Strasbourg before 1740. His ancestors were working for the royal Treasury...
, the devarāja
Devaraja
"Devarāja" is a Sanskrit word which could have different meanings such as "god-king" or "king of the gods". In a Khmer context the term was used in the latter sense, but occurs only in the Sanskrit portion of the inscription K...
cult consisted in the idea of divine kingship as a legitimacy of royal power, but later authors stated that it doesn't necessarily involve the cult of physical persona of the ruler himself.
Bakong enjoyed its status as the state temple of Angkor for only a few years, but later additions from the 12th or 13th centuries testify that it was not abandoned. Toward the end of the 9th century, Indravarman's son and successor Yasovarman I moved the capital from Hariharalaya to the area north of Siem Reap
Siem Reap
Siem Reap is the capital city of Siem Reap Province in northwestern Cambodia, and is the gateway to Angkor region.Siem Reap has colonial and Chinese-style architecture in the Old French Quarter, and around the Old Market...
now known as Angkor
Angkor
Angkor is a region of Cambodia that served as the seat of the Khmer Empire, which flourished from approximately the 9th to 15th centuries. The word Angkor is derived from the Sanskrit nagara , meaning "city"...
, where he founded the new city of Yasodharapura
Yasodharapura
Yaśodharapura was the first capital of the Khmer empire to be built at the Angkor site. The city was built during the reign of King Yasovarman I after the palace in the previous capital at Roluos was burned during his struggle to consolidate power upon the death of the previous king, his...
around a new temple mountain called Bakheng
Phnom Bakheng
-See also:* Angkor* Architecture of Cambodia* List of archaeoastronomical sites by country-References:* Goloubev, Victor. Le Phnom Bakheng et la ville de Yasovarman. Bulletin de l'EFEO , 33 : 319-344....
.
Site
The site of Bakong measures 900 meters by 700 meters, and consists of three concentric enclosures separated by two moats, the main axis going from east to west. The outer enclosure has neither a wall nor gopuras and its boundary is the outer moat, today only partially visibile. The current access road from NH6National Highway 6 (Cambodia)
National Highway 6 or National Road No.6 is one of the national highways of Cambodia. At long, it connects the capital of Phnom Penh with Banteay Meanchey....
leads at the edge of the second enclosure. The inner moat delimits a 400 by 300 meters area, with remains of a laterite wall and four cruciform gopuras, and it is crossed by a wide earthen causeway, flanked by seven-headed nāga
Naga
Naga or NAGA may refer to:* Nāga, a group of serpent deities in Hindu and Buddhist mythology.-People:* Nayan / Nayar/Nair people of Kerala Society* Naga people, a diverse ethnic identity in Northeast India...
s, such as a draft of nāga bridge . Between the two moats there are the remains of 22 satellite temples of brick. The innermost enclosure, bounded by a laterite wall, measures 160 meters by 120 meters and contains the central temple pyramid and eight brick temple towers, two on each side. A number of other smaller buildings are also located within the enclosure. Just outside of the eastern gopura there is a modern buddhist temple.
The pyramid itself has five levels and its base is 65 by 67 meters. It was reconstructed by Maurice Glaize at the end of the 1930s according to methods of anastylosis
Anastylosis
Anastylosis is an archaeological term for a reconstruction technique whereby a ruined building or monument is restored using the original architectural elements to the greatest degree possible...
. On the top there is a single tower that is much later in provenance, and the architectural style of which is not that of the 9th century foundations of Hariharalaya, but that of the 12th century temple city Angkor Wat
Angkor Wat
Angkor Wat is a temple complex at Angkor, Cambodia, built for the king Suryavarman II in the early 12th century as his state temple and capital city. As the best-preserved temple at the site, it is the only one to have remained a significant religious centre since its foundation – first Hindu,...
.
Though the pyramid at one time must have been covered with bas relief carvings in stucco, today only fragments remain. A dramatic scene-fragment involving what appear to be asuras in battle gives a sense of the likely high quality of the carvings. Large stone statues of elephants are positioned as guardians at the corners of the three lower levels of the pyramid. Statues of lions guard the stairways.
See also
- AngkorAngkorAngkor is a region of Cambodia that served as the seat of the Khmer Empire, which flourished from approximately the 9th to 15th centuries. The word Angkor is derived from the Sanskrit nagara , meaning "city"...
- Architecture of CambodiaArchitecture of CambodiaThe period of Angkor is the period from approximately the latter half of the 8th century AD to the first half of the 15th century. If precise dates are required, the beginning may be set in 802 AD, when the founder of the Khmer Empire , Jayavarman II pronounced himself universal monarch and...
- Preah KoPreah KoPreah Ko was the first temple to be built in the ancient and now defunct city of Hariharalaya , some 15 kilometers south-east of the main group of temples at Angkor, Cambodia...
- LoleiLoleiLolei is the northernmost temple of the Roluos group of three late 9th century Hindu temples at Angkor, Cambodia, the others members of which are Preah Ko and the Bakong. Lolei was the last of the three temples to be built as part of the city of Hariharalaya that once flourished at Roluos, and...
- HariharalayaHariharalayaHariharalaya was an ancient city and capital of the Khmer empire located near Siem Reap, Cambodia in an area now called Roluos. Today, all that remains of the city are the ruins of several royal temples: Preah Ko, the Bakong, Lolei.-Etymology:...