The Khmer Empire (Khmer: ចក្រភពខ្មែរ) or the Angkor Empire (Khmer: ចក្រភពអង្គរ), now known as Cambodia, was the powerful Khmer Hindu-Buddhist empire in Southeast Asia. The empire, which grew out of the former Kingdom of Funan and Chenla , at times ruled over and/or vassalized most of mainland Southeast Asia, parts of modern-day Laos, Thailand, and southern Vietnam Its greatest legacy is Angkor, in present-day Cambodia, which was the site of the capital city during the empires zenith. The majestic monuments of Angkor — such as Angkor Wat and Bayon — bear testimony to the Khmer empires immense power and wealth, impressive art and culture, architectural technique and aesthetics achievements, as well as the variety of belief systems that it patronised over time. Recently satellite imaging has revealed Angkor to be the largest pre-industrial urban center in the world. The beginning of the era of the Khmer Empire is conventionally dated to 802 AD. In this year, king Jayavarman II had himself declared chakravartin (king of the world, or king of kings) on Phnom Kulen. The empire ended with the fall of Angkor in the 15th century. The history of Angkor as the central area of settlement of the historical kingdom of Kambujadesa is also the history of the Khmer kingdom from the 9th to the 13th centuries. From Kambuja itself — and so also from the Angkor region — no written records have survived other than stone inscriptions. Therefore the current knowledge of the historical Khmer civilization is derived primarily from: Archaeological excavation, reconstruction and investigation Stone inscriptions (most important are foundation steles of temples), which report on the political and religious deeds of the kings Reliefs in a series of temple walls with depictions of military marches, life in the palace, market scenes and also the everyday lives of the population Reports and chronicles of Chinese diplomats, traders and travellers. From Wikipedia
Posted on: Tue, 09 Dec 2014 02:35:12 +0000
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