Damrong Rajanubhab

“ Of the materials for building, namely brick, laterite and stone, or mixtures of either, one would be inclined at first to believe that brick was the earliest in use, because it was easy to make and easy to handle even with only comparatively few workmen. As their resources and power increased, the Khmer probably began to adopt laterite which was more durable. At the height of their power, when they could obtain workmen by tens of thousands, they graduated into stone which would last and could be carved in as beautiful a manner as they wished. ”

“ A fact which may, however, not be generally known among you, is that it is the custom here for the dead body of a prince to be clothed in the traditional apparel of a divine being and to be then placed in the urn, which is thus perhaps a survival of a Brahminical custom formerly in use among the ancient Khmer. ”

“ The idea underlying the whole structure seems to me more beautiful than that of all the other monuments. The dome with human faces is imitated elsewhere, such as on the top of the city and monastery gates, but they abound in Angkor only. A curious point worth drawing your attention to is that, although Bayon was a beautiful conception as a whole, yet an architectural mistake was made in that, while the central dome was being built, it was discovered that the foundations were unable to bear its weight. ”

“ Most Khmer monuments are in the form of sanctuaries. Some are Buddhist, whilst others are Brahmin. The styles of architecture and decoration originated in India, but were later modified by skilled artists so as to create finally an altogether independisseminated everywhere. Monuments as far away as in Siam were modelled in the style of Angkor, diminishing of course in size and proportion, or else copying merely one or other sections of the great sanctuary. Khmer monuments are, therefore, easy to recognise anywhere. They are all fine and imposing. ”

“ Although these monuments were built for different religions, some Buddhist, some Hindu, yet in examining their decorative art it is quite impossible to distinguish between them. It must have been more difficult to evolve themes of decoration from purely Buddhist traditions, there being no such great epics as the Mahabharata and the Ramayana which lend themselves so splendidly for such purposes. Some of you who have been been to see old Siamese book-cases in the National Library here will no doubt recollect that their decorations are mostly inspired by the Ramayana. ”

“ Here you will find the Mahādhātu monastery on an ordinary level, and not far away the Sāl Sūng, a Hindu sanctuary, raised on tiers of plinth. An explanation has been put forward that the Hindu believes that his god is still living, and likes living on mountain tops, whilst the Buddhist monastery regards his temple as a memorial of the Great Teacher who has been long since dead. These Hindu sanctuaries, besides, being raised on tiers of plinth, are not easy of access because their steps are narrow and high and rather dangerous (Plate VIII) . ”

“ Besides, most of you will no doubt have seen pictures and plans of these famous monuments already, and a good many will also have read the various works thereon. So that it will not the necessary for me to repeat here the results that have been reached by western scholars. I shall, with your leave, treat the subject entirely from the point of view of an Oriental, and especially that of a Siamese who professes the same religion and follows the same manners and customs as the Cambodians. ”

“ When the Khmer spread their influence over the Lao, they established Colonies and erected monuments further and further into Lao territories. This process continued until Khmer power waned towards the eleventh century A.D., owing to the invasions of the Burmese and Môn at first, and then to the rise of Siamese power in the Menam valley. The Siamese finally conquered the Khmer in the 14th century. ”

“ Even before the dawn of the Christian Era, there had been India colonists settling in Indo-China, some of them perhaps as long ago as the seventh or eighth century before Christ. They were probably traders who came and went away after having made their living, and then there would be others who settled down for good. ”

“ There was a Khmer King, according to tradition, who became a leper because of a curse from a Brahmin priest, and on this terrace there happened to be a stone effigy of Siva, one arm of which was discoloured. It came, therefore, to be regarded as a statue of that king, and hence the terrace received its name. On close examination, however, one finds that the sides of this high terrace are sculptured with tier after tier of different kinds of beings ”