Original subtitles

THE YEAR IS 1177 AD

THE POWERFUL KHMER EMPIRE HAS DOMINATED

THE SOUTHEAST ASIAN MAINLAND FOR CENTURIES.

A GREAT AND SOPHISTICATED CIVILIZATION,

THEY BUILT THE LARGEST TEMPLE ON EARTH,

THE RESPLENDENT ANGKOR WAT.

AND THEIR CAPITAL IS THE LARGEST CITY IN THE WORLD.

BUT NOW THE EMPIRE IS FALTERING,

AND THE KHMER SUFFER A GREAT HUMILIATION

AT THE HANDS OF AN INVADING ENEMY.

THEIR ONLY HOPE LIES WITH AN EXILED PRINCE.

THE FUTURE OF A GREAT EMPIRE RESTS WITH ONE MAN.

[SHOUTING]

Subtitles make by Smithsonian Channel Resync by Iscol@HDVietNam.com

Angkor Land of the Gods Throne of Power

A GREAT KINGDOM THRIVED FOR CENTURIES.

THE KHMER WERE THE BUILDERS OF ANGKOR WAT,

A MASTERPIECE THAT'S STILL

THE LARGEST SACRED STRUCTURE EVER BUILT.

THEIR CULTURE WAS RICH AND COMPLEX,

BLENDING THEIR ADOPTED RELIGION OF HINDUISM

WITH OLDER INDIGENOUS TRADITIONS AND BELIEFS.

THEIR ART AND MONUMENTAL ARCHITECTURE

WAS SO IMPRESSIVE AND ADVANCED

THAT SOME LOCAL PEOPLE STILL BELIEVE

THEY MUST HAVE BEEN BUILT BY GODS.

BUT IT WAS THE PEOPLE OF THE KHMER EMPIRE

WHO BUILT THE GREAT CITY OF ANGKOR,

AND OVER SIX CENTURIES,

FILLED IT WITH NEARLY 1,200 SPLENDID TEMPLES

CARVED FROM STONE.

EVENTUALLY THIS GREAT CIVILIZATION COLLAPSED,

AND ITS CAPITAL CITY AND GRAND TEMPLES WERE LARGELY ABANDONED.

WHATEVER INVASIONS ENCROACHED HERE,

THE JUNGLE'S ASSAULT WAS THE FINAL ONE,

SWALLOWING MUCH OF THE EMPIRE'S FORMER GLORY.

IT'S OFTEN SAID THAT

NATURE IS THE FINAL CONQUEROR OF ALL THINGS.

CENTURIES AGO, THIS JUNGLE CONQUERED AND CONCEALED

A MONUMENTAL HUMAN ACHIEVEMENT, THE ANCIENT CITY OF ANGKOR.

HI, I'M YUL KWON.

CAMBODIANS HAD LONG WHISPERED

OF A FABULOUS LOST CITY IN THE JUNGLE,

AND IN 1860, THE FRENCH BOTANIST HENRI MOUHOT

DISCOVERED THAT IT WAS REAL.

AND ONLY NOW, 150 YEARS LATER,

ARE WE STARTING TO FULLY APPRECIATE ITS SECRETS.

THANKS TO DECADES OF PAINSTAKING RESEARCH AND RESTORATION,

WE CAN TRAVEL BACK IN TIME,

RECREATE THE SPLENDOR OF ANCIENT ANGKOR,

AND BEGIN TO UNDERSTAND HOW ITS CREATORS LIVED.

ANGKOR'S LICHEN-COVERED TEMPLES

STILL HIDE UNDISCOVERED TREASURES.

THIS STRUCTURE HAS BEEN REFERRED TO AS THE CHAMBER OF JEWELS,

WHERE SOME CLAIM GLITTERING GEMS ONCE ADORNED ITS WALLS.

IN THE FIRST HALF OF THE 12th CENTURY,

THE KHMER CONSTRUCTED ANGKOR WAT,

THE MOST MASSIVE TEMPLE ON EARTH.

THE EMPIRE AT THAT TIME DOMINATED SOUTHEAST ASIA

AND WAS RULED BY A POWERFUL AND CHARISMATIC KING,

SURYAVARMAN II.

BUT AFTER HIS DEATH, THE KHMER EMPIRE FALTERED.

INTERNAL STRUGGLES AND ATTACKS BY BORDERING EMPIRES

WEAKENED THE KHMER TERRITORY.

THEN, IN 1177,

THE CHAMPA KINGDOM ATTACKED ANGKOR.

[YELLING]

THE CHAM PEOPLE RULED WHAT IS NOW CENTRAL AND SOUTH VIETNAM.

THEIR SURPRISE RAID ON THE SACRED CITY

WAS A DEVASTATING EVENT.

[ELEPHANT TRUMPETS]

A KHMER INSCRIPTION TELLS THE STORY.

"FULL OF PROUD CONFIDENCE, THE CHAM KING INVADED OUR COUNTRY--

A PARADISE ON EARTH."

THE INVADING KING RAVAGED THE CITY OF ANGKOR

AND ADVANCED ON THE KHMER ROYAL PALACE ITSELF.

A STONE SCULPTURE RECORDS THAT "WITH A POWERFUL FLEET,

HE PILLAGED IT AND PUT THE KING TO DEATH,

WITHOUT LISTENING TO ANY REASON OR PROPOSAL OF PEACE."

THE KHMER KING LAY DEAD.

WITH THEIR KING MURDERED AND THEIR CITY OCCUPIED,

THE KHMER WERE DEEPLY HUMILIATED.

TO ONE MAN, THE INSULTS WERE UNBEARABLE--

A ROYAL PRINCE WHOM HISTORY WOULD CALL JAYAVARMAN VII.

IN CAMBODIAN CULTURE,

JAYAVARMAN VII IS BOTH A HERO AND A MYSTERY,

WITH MANY DETAILS OF HIS LIFE REMAINING UNKNOWN.

HE WAS INDEED A ROYAL PRINCE,

THOUGH HE PROBABLY DIDN'T HAVE A LEGITIMATE CLAIM TO THE THRONE.

HE IS BELIEVED TO HAVE BEEN

OUT OF FAVOR WITH THE ANGKOR RULERS,

LIVING WITH HIS WIFE IN VOLUNTARY EXILE

TO AVOID BEING KILLED.

WHEN THE CHAM ARMY ATTACKED,

HE WASN'T IN THE CITY OF ANGKOR,

AND MAY IN FACT HAVE BEEN VISITING

THE CHAMPA EMPIRE ITSELF.

INSCRIPTIONS CARVED DURING HIS REIGN

DESCRIBE HIM AS A BRAVE WARRIOR,

DEEPLY PAINED BY THE SUBJUGATION OF HIS NATIVE PEOPLE.

ONE ACCOUNT DESCRIBES THE BRUTAL TREATMENT OF THE KHMER

AT THE HANDS OF THE CHAM ARMY.

[YELLING]

"DURING THE EIGHTH MOON,

THE KING OF CHAMPA EXACTED FROM THE KHMERS

THOUSANDS OF HUMAN GALLBLADDERS."

"THEY WOULD CONFRONT PEOPLE, THROW A HOOD OVER THEIR HEADS,

THEN THEY WOULD STAB THEM IN THE SIDE WITH A DAGGER

AND REMOVE THEIR GALLBLADDER."

THIS BARBARIC PRACTICE CAME FROM AN ANCIENT BELIEF

THAT THE GALLBLADDER CONTAINS A PERSON'S COURAGE,

AND THAT BY CONSUMING THE GALL OF ONE'S ENEMIES,

A WARRIOR WOULD GROW MORE BRAVE AND POWERFUL.

WHEN JAYAVARMAN VII HEARD OF THE BRUTAL TREATMENT OF HIS PEOPLE,

HE RETURNED HOME TO SEE FOR HIMSELF.

[SCREAMING]

VIOLENCE AND CHAOS REIGNED IN THE OCCUPIED KHMER EMPIRE.

JAYAVARMAN VII WAS ALREADY MORE THAN 40 YEARS OLD

WHEN HE LEARNED THE KHMER KING HAD BEEN KILLED.

WHEN HE SAW WHAT WAS HAPPENING,

HE FELT CALLED TO DEFEND HIS HOMELAND.

THE KHMER NEEDED A HERO AND A GALVANIZING LEADER.

BUT DEFEATING THE CHAM WOULD BE NO EASY TASK.

[SHOUTING]

[CHEERING]

JAYAVARMAN VII WAS BORN IN KAMPONG SVAY,

MORE THAN 60 MILES TO THE EAST OF ANGKOR.

THANKS TO RICH DEPOSITS OF IRON ORE,

THE REGION WAS A MAJOR PRODUCER OF WEAPONRY.

JAYAVARMAN VII MADE THIS HIS HOME BASE

AS HE WORKED TO CONSOLIDATE HIS POWER.

HE WAS ABLE TO RAISE A SIZEABLE ARMY AND BEGAN TRAINING,

PREPARING HIS FORCES FOR WAR WITH THE CHAM.

THE CHAM HAD INVADED BY WATER,

BRINGING THEIR FLEET TO THE MEKONG RIVER,

REACHING ANGKOR FOR THE GIANT LAKE, TONLE SAP.

JAYAVARMAN VII'S FORCES PUSHED THE INVADERS BACK TO THE LAKE

AND EVENTUALLY FARTHER SOUTH.

THEN, IN 1178,

THE KHMER HERO AND THE CHAM KING CLASHED IN A FIERCE BATTLE.

IN THE HISTORY OF ANCIENT CAMBODIA.

KHMER SHIPS WERE ALMOST 90 FEET LONG

AND CARRIED SOME 45 MEN.

THE CHAM VESSELS WERE CLOSELY MATCHED.

THE WARRIORS FOUGHT WITH BOWS, ARROWS AND SPEARS.

THE BATTLE WAS LONG AND BLOODY,

AND THE FORCES FOUGHT HAND TO HAND.

BOTH JAYAVARMAN VII AND THE CHAM KING FOUGHT ALONGSIDE THEIR MEN.

AN INSCRIPTION REVEALS THE OUTCOME.

"JAYAVARMAN VII SLAUGHTERED THE CHAM KING

AND PROTECTED THIS LAND."

IN THE ANGKOR TEMPLE OF BAYON, BUILT LATER BY JAYAVARMAN VII,

THERE'S A VIVID DEPICTION OF THE DAY'S FIGHTING.

THE RELIEF SHOWS CHAM SOLDIERS SHOT BY ARROWS,

FLOATING IN THE WATER AND TORN TO PIECES BY CROCODILES.

THAT OLD SAYING, "HISTORY IS WRITTEN BY THE VICTORS,"

WAS CERTAINLY TRUE IN THE LATE 12th CENTURY.

ALMOST EVERYTHING WE KNOW ABOUT JAYAVARMAN VII

COMES FROM INSCRIPTIONS WRITTEN DURING HIS REIGN.

THE PASSAGES ARE LIKELY PROPAGANDA,

BUT THEY DO TELL US A LOT ABOUT LIFE AT THAT TIME.

FOR EXAMPLE, WE KNOW THAT JAYAVARMAN VII

WAS A POWERFUL KING

WHO BROKE WITH TRADITION IN MANY WAYS.

HE BECAME A DEVOUT BUDDHIST AND WAS A COMPASSIONATE RULER

WHO PUT THE NEEDS AND COMFORT OF HIS PEOPLE FIRST.

IN 1181 A.D.,

THREE YEARS AFTER THE DEFEAT OF THE CHAMS,

JAYAVARMAN VII WAS CROWNED KING.

HE WAS LIKELY ACCOMPANIED BY HIS QUEEN,

SAID TO BE "AS WISE AS THE GREATEST LEARNED MEN."

WHEN JAYAVARMAN VII TOOK THE CROWN,

HIS SUBJECTS SWORE AN OATH OF LOYALTY TO HIM.

SO BEGAN THE REIGN OF JAYAVARMAN VII,

CONSIDERED ONE OF THE GREATEST RULERS

IN THE HISTORY OF THE KHMER EMPIRE.

HIS PEOPLE WERE IN DESPAIR AND HIS KINGDOM LAY IN RUINS.

THE NEW KING QUICKLY UNDERTOOK A SERIES OF MASSIVE PROJECTS

TO RESTORE AND REBUILD THE CAPITAL CITY.

FIRST, HE BUILT A SUBSTANTIAL DEFENSIVE WALL

AROUND THE HEART OF THE CITY, REPLACING A WOODEN PARAPET.

THEN HE RESTORED THE MOAT SURROUNDING THE CITY

AND MADE IT DEEPER.

THE ENORMOUS MOAT MEASURED 400 FEET ACROSS

AND WAS CONNECTED TO THE COMPLEX SYSTEM OF ANGKOR'S WATERWAYS.

BY RESTORING THE MOAT

AND INSTALLING THE MASSIVE 30-FOOT-HIGH WALL,

HE MADE HIS CITY INTO AN IMPREGNABLE FORTRESS

WHICH NO INVADER COULD BREACH.

THIS NEW WALL DEFINED ANGKOR THOM,

JAYAVARMAN'S ROYAL CITY

BUILT WITHIN THE ANCIENT ANGKOR REGION.

ANGKOR THOM MEANS "GREAT CITY."

AND EVEN NOW, ITS PARAMETERS ARE DISTINCTLY OUTLINED

IN THE CAMBODIAN JUNGLE.

THE WALLS ENCLOSED A CITY FOUR MILES SQUARE--

ENORMOUS BY 12th CENTURY STANDARDS,

AND ROUGHLY FOUR TIMES THE SIZE OF PARIS AT THAT TIME.

TO ENTER THE CITY, THEN AS NOW,

VISITORS HAD TO CROSS A WIDE BRIDGE.

CALLED THE NAGA OR "SERPENT" BRIDGE,

THE SOUTH GATE CAUSEWAY IS GUARDED ON THE LEFT SIDE

BY 54 EVIL SPIRITS HOLDING ON TO A GIANT SNAKE.

ON THE RIGHT SIDE, 54 DEVAS, OR BENEVOLENT GODS, DO THE SAME.

THIS SERPENT BRIDGE IS AN ECHO OF THE FAMOUS HINDU LEGEND

OF THE CHURNING OF THE SEA OF MILK.

AT THE END OF THE BRIDGE IS A 75-FOOT-HIGH TOWER

CALLED A GOPURA.

THIS TRADITIONAL GATE SIGNIFIES THE ENTRANCE TO A HOLY CITY.

INSIDE THE GATE LAY A SPRAWLING METROPOLIS

WITH GREAT TEMPLES

AND PUBLIC SQUARES

AS WELL AS THE ORNATE ROYAL PALACE.

THIS IS THE TERRACE OF THE ELEPHANTS,

THE ENTRANCE TO THE ROYAL PALACE.

THOUGH ONLY THE FOUNDATION REMAINS,

THE IMPRESSIVE STONE TERRACE ONCE SERVED

AS THE ROYAL REVIEWING STAND FOR PUBLIC CEREMONIES.

LIFE-SIZE STATUES AND RELIEFS OF ELEPHANTS

GRACE BOTH SIDES OF THE CENTRAL TERRACE.

THE IMAGES ARE APPROPRIATE

BECAUSE THE SQUARE WAS ALSO USED TO TRAIN COMBAT ELEPHANTS

FOR BATTLE.

THE KING PRESIDED OVER PUBLIC EVENTS FROM HERE,

AT THE CENTER OF THE TERRACE.

STATUES OF A LION AND THE NAGA, A MYTHICAL SERPENT,

STAND ON EITHER SIDE OF THE KING'S PLATFORM.

MYTHICAL BIRDS CALLED GARUDAS

SUPPORT THE TERRACE FROM BENEATH.

ON THE NORTH SIDE OF THE TERRACE IS A CARVING

ASSOCIATED WITH A WELL-KNOWN LEGEND.

CALLED THE TERRACE OF THE LEPER KING,

SOME BELIEVE IT DEPICTS A KING WHO BEHEADED A SUBJECT

FOR REFUSING TO KNEEL BEFORE HIM.

INFECTED BY HIS SUBJECT'S BLOOD,

THE LEGENDARY KING BECAME A LEPER HIMSELF.

ON THE OTHER SIDE OF THE SQUARE STAND 12 STONE TOWERS

CALLED PRASAT SUOR PRAT.

THIS AREA MAY HAVE BEEN USED AS A COURT

FOR JUDGING THOSE ACCUSED OF WRONGDOING.

THE TERRACE WAS ONCE A SPLENDID PUBLIC SPACE,

RINGED WITH COVERED GALLERIES GLEAMING IN THE SUN.

JAYAVARMAN VII RESTORED THE PALACE WITHIN ANGKOR THOM.

THE PALACE WAS ORIGINALLY BUILT IN THE 9th CENTURY

BUT BURNED DOWN DURING THE WAR.

UNTIL RECENTLY,

THE ORIGINAL APPEARANCE OF THE PALACE WAS A MYSTERY.

ASIDE FROM THE GOPURA LEADING TO THE MAIN ENTRANCEWAY

AND THE 13-FOOT-HIGH SURROUNDING WALL,

THE PALACE ITSELF NO LONGER STANDS.

TO LEARN MORE, FRENCH ARCHAEOLOGISTS

DRILLED THOUSANDS OF HOLES IN THE GROUND

AND ANALYZED THE SOIL SAMPLES FROM HERE.

WE NOW KNOW THAT THE PALACE WAS BUILT

ON TOP OF A LARGE WOODEN FOUNDATION,

ONLY FRAGMENTS OF WHICH SURVIVE.

Jacques Gaucher [translated]: THIS PIECE WAS 40 TO 50 CENTIMETERS WIDE,

13 TO 16 FEET IN LENGTH,

ABOUT EIGHT INCHES IN THICKNESS, AND VERY STURDY.

THIS WAS USED AS THE FOUNDATION

AND STRUCTURES WERE BUILT ON TOP OF THIS PLATFORM.

Kwon: THE ENTIRE PALACE COVERED 37 ACRES.

ITS WOODEN COLUMNS ARE LONG GONE,

BUT IT'S OFTEN POSSIBLE TO SEE WHERE THEY ONCE STOOD.

OTHER EVIDENCE OF THE PLACEMENT OF THESE COLUMNS

IS FOUND THROUGHOUT THIS AREA,

INDICATED BY STONE FOUNDATIONS AND INDENTATIONS.

Hans Leisen: ALL OF THE BUILDINGS HERE AT THE PALACE

WAS BUILT IN WOODEN CONSTRUCTION,

AND MAYBE THEY COPIED THE TECHNIQUES

OF BONDING OF PIECES OF STONE FROM THE WOOD CONSTRUCTION.

Kwon: THE BUILDINGS OF THE PALACE

WOULD HAVE BEEN CONNECTED

BY SPLENDID HIGH-CEILING GALLERIES

SUPPORTED BY THE COLUMNS.

A ROW OF COLUMNS 31 INCHES IN DIAMETER

ONCE STOOD ON TOP OF THIS STONE PLATFORM.

THESE COLUMNS WERE BUILT WITH LOCAL TREES

CALLED SLOKRAM AND KOKI,

WHICH ARE SO DENSE THEY SINK IN WATER.

THESE STURDY SUPPORTS HELD UP A GALLERY ROOF,

WHICH DID NOT SURVIVE.

BUT HISTORY LEFT US AN INVALUABLE DESCRIPTION

OF THE PALACE'S FACADE.

NEAR THE END OF THE 13th CENTURY,

A CHINESE DIPLOMAT NAMED ZHOU DAGUAN

WAS SENT TO THE KHMER EMPIRE AND ENDED UP STAYING FOR 11 MONTHS.

THE MEMOIR HE WROTE ABOUT LIFE IN ANGKOR THOM

IS STILL A VALUABLE RESOURCE FOR HISTORIANS.

IN HIS BOOK, THE CUSTOMS OF CAMBODIA, ZHOU WRITES,

"THE MAIN HALL OF THE PALACE WAS COVERED WITH LEAD TILES.

THE REST HAD STONE TILES,

WHILE THE COLUMNS WERE ENGRAVED WITH IMAGES OF THE BUDDHA."

Gaucher: THIS BUILDING HAD A TWO-LAYERED ROOF

WHICH WAS COVERED IN SHINGLES.

AS YOU CAN SEE HERE, MOST OF THE SHINGLES WERE GLAZED.

THEY WERE PAINTED YELLOW OR A GREENISH YELLOW.

THIS WAS OFTEN USED IN THE 10th CENTURY.

Kwon: ZHOU DAGUAN'S ACCOUNT REVEALS THAT

THE INSIDE ROOMS OF THE PALACE WERE SO HEAVILY GUARDED,

HE COULD NOT SET FOOT IN THEM.

HE COULD ONLY GLIMPSE THE KING FROM OUTSIDE.

BUT THERE ARE CLUES IN A RELIEF

CARVED ON THE EASTERN SIDE OF THE BAYON TEMPLE

WHICH RECORDS THE LIFESTYLE OF THE ROYAL FAMILY.

SPLENDID BEAMS ORNAMENTED WITH FLAMES

DECORATE THE EAVES AND THE SHINGLED ROOF,

AND THE PATTERN IS LIKELY REPEATED INSIDE THE PALACE.

ZHOU DAGUAN ALSO RECORDED

WHAT HE SAW OF THE KING'S CHAMBER FROM FAR AWAY.

"THERE IS A GOLDEN WINDOW THERE,

AND BELOW THE WINDOW IS THE IMAGE OF AN ELEPHANT."

FOR THE FIRST TIME EVER,

ALL THESE CLUES ALLOW US TO RECREATE

WHAT THE PALACE MAY HAVE LOOKED LIKE

AT THE HEIGHT OF THE KHMER EMPIRE.

THE PALACE HAD MANY LUXURIES.

THOUGH IT'S NOW A CHILDREN'S SWIMMING POOL,

THIS WAS ONCE A ROYAL OUTDOOR BATH,

50 YARDS WIDE AND 100 YARDS LONG.

WOODEN GALLERIES SURROUNDED THE BATH ON ALL SIDES

AND CONNECTED IT TO THE OTHER BUILDINGS.

AND ZHOU DAGUAN MENTIONED WHAT HE SAW HERE.

"THERE ARE 3,005 CONCUBINES AND LADIES-IN-WAITING

LIVING INSIDE THE PALACE.

THEY BATHE COMPLETELY NUDE,

AND UNLIKE MOST OTHER PEOPLE HERE,

THEIR SKIN IS AS PALE AS WHITE JADE."

IN THE 13th CENTURY,

THE ANGKOR AREA SUPPORTED A LARGE POPULATION.

ZHOU DAGUAN WRITES THAT THE PEOPLE SPENT THEIR LEISURE TIME

WATCHING COCKFIGHTS AND OTHER ENTERTAINMENTS.

AND, HE SAID, THEY HAD PLENTY TO EAT.

ZHOU ALSO WROTE THAT IN THE COUNTRYSIDE AND RICE FIELDS

WERE HERDS OF THOUSANDS OF WILD WATER BUFFALO.

AND ZHOU RETOLD AN INTERESTING OLD LEGEND

ABOUT A MYSTICAL SNAKE CALLED A NAGA,

WHICH FIGURES HEAVILY IN KHMER MYTHOLOGY.

THIS STORY IS SET IN THE 10th CENTURY

IN THE TEMPLE OF PHIMEANAKAS,

WHICH MEANS "PALACE OF THE HEAVENS."

INSIDE THE SOARING PALACE IS A SECRET TEMPLE.

"THERE ARE MANY WONDERFUL PLACES WITHIN THE PALACE," ZHOU WROTE.

"AND AT NIGHTTIME, THE KING WOULD ALWAYS VISIT THE TOWER."

IN THE MIDDLE OF THE TOWER

LIVED A SPIRIT OF A SNAKE WITH NINE HEADS.

AND EVERY NIGHT,

THIS SNAKE WOULD TURN INTO A BEAUTIFUL WOMAN.

THE KING WOULD BED THIS WOMAN EACH NIGHT,

AND DURING THIS TIME, EVEN THE QUEEN WAS FORBIDDEN TO ENTER.

AND IF THE KING NEGLECTED TO VISIT THIS WOMAN

EVEN FOR A SINGLE NIGHT,

A CALAMITY WOULD BEFALL THE KINGDOM WITHOUT QUESTION.

JAYAVARMAN VII WOULD HAVE KNOWN THIS OLD TALE,

AS WELL AS OTHERS FROM KHMER MYTHOLOGY.

BUT HE DIFFERED FROM NEARLY EVERY PREVIOUS KHMER KING

BECAUSE HE WAS A BUDDHIST.

TOGETHER WITH HIS QUEEN,

HE PERFORMED A SACRED RITUAL EVERY MAY

CALLED "BATHING THE BUDDHA."

JAYAVARMAN VII VERY MUCH ADMIRED AN EARLIER KHMER KING,

SURYAVARMAN II, WHO RULED 80 YEARS PREVIOUSLY.

THIS WAS THE REVERED KHMER RULER WHO USHERED IN A GOLDEN AGE

AND BUILT THE GREAT TEMPLE, ANGKOR WAT.

SURYAVARMAN II BEGAN WORK ON THE ENORMOUS TEMPLE

AFTER HE TOOK THE THRONE IN 1113.

COMPLETED IN JUST 40 YEARS,

THIS TEMPLE WAS DESIGNED AS A HINDU SHRINE

DEVOTED TO THE GOD VISHNU.

INSIDE, THE CENTRAL SANCTUARY FEATURED

A GREAT GOLD STATUE OF VISHNU.

JAYAVARMAN VII ADMIRED HIS PREDECESSOR'S GREAT TEMPLE,

AND HE RESOLVED TO BUILD HIS OWN.

BUT HIS MASTERPIECE WOULD BE A BUDDHIST TEMPLE

IN THE CENTER OF ANGKOR THOM, HIS GREAT WALLED CITY.

JAYAVARMAN VII'S MASTERPIECE IS THE BAYON,

WHICH STILL STANDS TODAY.

THIS DRAMATIC TEMPLE IS A RECTANGULAR STRUCTURE

750 FEET, EAST TO WEST, BY 500 FEET, NORTH TO SOUTH.

NO FEWER THAN 52 TOWERS RISE TO THE SKY,

INCLUDING THE 140-FOOT-HIGH CENTRAL TOWER.

AND GAZING IMPASSIVELY FROM THE SIDES OF THESE TOWERS

ARE THE CARVED RELIEFS OF 173 FACES.

THE OUTER GALLERIES OF THE BAYON

ARE CARVED WITH MORE THAN 2,000 FEET OF RELIEFS,

REVEALING RICH DETAILS OF EVERYDAY LIFE AT THE TIME.

AND FOREIGN BUYERS HARASSING TOPLESS KHMER WOMEN

WHO ARE SELLING ITEMS ON THE STREET.

A WOMAN POINTS AN ACCUSING FINGER AS SHE COOKS.

HER FINGER IS DIRECTED AT HER SON

WHO IS WASTING VALUABLE TIME WATCHING A COCKFIGHT.

THERE'S AN IMAGE OF A VALIANT KHMER WARRIOR

AS HE SKEWERS AN ENEMY CHAM SOLDIER WITH A SPEAR.

THERE'S ALSO A DETAILED SCENE OF THE CHAM IN THEIR BOATS

ON LAKE TONLE SAP AS THEY INVADE ANGKOR.

IN THE EASTERN GALLERY OF THE TEMPLE,

THE RELIEFS CELEBRATE THE LIFE AND REIGN OF JAYAVARMAN VII.

THERE'S A SCENE IN WHICH COMMANDERS MOUNTED ON ELEPHANTS

MARCH TOWARD THE ENEMY AT THE KING'S ORDERS.

THE CHINESE SOLDIERS WITH SPEARS WHO FOLLOW THE ELEPHANTS ON FOOT

ARE BELIEVED TO BE MERCENARIES.

IN THE RELIEFS OF THE BAYON,

AS WELL AS THE STRUCTURE'S MOUNTAINOUS SHAPE,

BUT THE BAYON WAS BUILT AS A BUDDHIST SHRINE,

NOT A HINDU TEMPLE.

AT ITS VERY CENTER,

JAYAVARMAN VII PLACED A STATUE OF BUDDHA.

THOUGH THIS SCULPTURE IS FROM A LATER PERIOD,

THE ORIGINAL STATUE WAS REMOVED AFTER JAYAVARMAN'S DEATH,

WHEN THE EMPIRE REVERTED TO HINDUISM FOR A TIME.

THE ORIGINAL WAS LATER DISCOVERED

BY A FRENCH EXCAVATION TEAM

AND IS NOW DISPLAYED ON THE PALACE SQUARE.

THE CONSTRUCTION OF THE BAYON POSED MANY CHALLENGES

TO ITS ANCIENT BUILDERS.

Ichito Shimoda [translated]: INTERESTINGLY, THERE IS A SCENE IN A GALLERY RELIEF

OF THE TEMPLE WHICH DEPICTS HOW THE TEMPLE WAS CONSTRUCTED.

IT SHOWS HOW THE FOUNDATIONS WERE BUILT.

THEY USED SAND INSIDE WOODEN FRAMES

IN ORDER TO ACCOMPLISH THIS.

THE RELIEFS DEPICT HOW THE FOUNDATIONS WERE BUILT,

HOW THE STONES WERE MOVED AND HOW THEY WERE STACKED.

Kwon: WORKERS HAD TO COMPACT THE SOIL

IN ORDER TO PREPARE THE SWAMPY BUILDING SITE.

THEN, SOME 420,000 STONE BLOCKS WERE NEEDED

FOR THE TEMPLE'S CONSTRUCTION.

THE STONES CAME FROM A QUARRY AT PHNOM KULEN,

25 MILES FROM THE CONSTRUCTION SITE.

USING BAMBOO RAFTS,

THE STONES WERE FLOATED DOWN THE RIVER TOWARD ANGKOR THOM.

Olivier Cunin [translated]: FROM THE SIZE OF THE BUDDHA STATUE,

WE CAN TELL THAT IT WAS CARVED

FROM A SINGLE BLOCK OF SANDSTONE.

WE THINK THEY BUILT THE CENTRAL TOWER

WHERE THE STATUE WAS ENSHRINED FIRST,

AND THEN THE STONE STRUCTURES WERE BUILT AROUND THAT.

Kwon: STARTING WITH THE BUDDHA STATUE,

CONSTRUCTION PROGRESSED FROM THE CENTER OUTWARD,

WITH THE CENTRAL TOWER GOING UP FIRST.

EVENTUALLY, MORE TOWERS WERE ERECTED,

AND FINALLY THE TOWER TOOK ITS CURRENT FORM

WHEN THE OUTER GALLERIES AND WALLS WERE BUILT.

THOUGH NOW ONLY COLUMNS REMAIN,

IT'S BELIEVED THEY ONCE SUPPORTED A WOODEN STRUCTURE.

Cunin: INSIDE BAYON THERE WAS A WOODEN STRUCTURE

BUILT ON TOP OF A STONE FRAMEWORK.

TODAY, ONLY FRAGMENTS REMAIN

FROM WHERE THIS STRUCTURE WAS SECURED.

THIS WAS A COMMON ARCHITECTURAL ELEMENT

OFTEN USED IN MONUMENTS DURING THE TIME OF JAYAVARMAN VII.

THAT IS, FROM THE END OF THE 12th CENTURY

TO THE BEGINNING OF THE 13th.

Kwon: THIS STURDY STONE WALL AND DOORFRAME

SUGGEST THERE WAS ONCE A DOOR HERE.

AND THERE ARE OTHER CLUES TO HOW THE TEMPLE ONCE LOOKED.

ZHOU DAGUAN'S MEMOIR DESCRIBES THE EXTERIOR OF THE BAYON.

"THERE IS A GOLDEN TOWER AT THE CENTER OF THE COMPLEX,

AND THERE ARE 20 STONE TOWERS SURROUNDING IT.

IN ADDITION, THERE ARE SOME 100 STONE CHAMBERS."

Pascal Royere [translated]: THE RECORDS OF A CHINESE DIPLOMAT

WHO VISITED IN THE LATE 13th CENTURY ARE QUITE INTERESTING.

THEY CONTAIN INFORMATION ABOUT THE DESIGN OF ANGKOR

AND ITS POPULATION.

UNFORTUNATELY, SOME OF THE INFORMATION

IS EITHER ERRONEOUS OR UNVERIFIABLE.

THE RECORDS MENTION GOLDEN TOWERS IN BAYON.

BUT WE COULD NOT FIND TRACES OF GOLD IN BAYON.

IT'S SIMILAR TO A MENTION OF BRONZE TOWERS IN BAPHUON,

BUT NO TRACES OF BRONZE WERE FOUND THERE EITHER.

WE THINK THIS MAY BE BECAUSE THEY PAINTED THE TOWERS

TO RESEMBLE GOLD OR BRONZE.

BUT FROM AN ARCHAEOLOGICAL POINT OF VIEW,

WE CAN'T PROVE IT.

Kwon: BASED ON EVIDENCE AND EXPERT OPINIONS,

THESE COMPUTER IMAGES REVEAL THE PROBABLE APPEARANCE OF THE BAYON

WHEN IT WAS COMPLETED.

IN THE EXACT CENTER OF ANGKOR THOM

JAYAVARMAN VII BUILT THE SPLENDID BAYON

IN HONOR OF THE BUDDHA.

THE MOST STRIKING FEATURE OF THE BAYON

IS ALSO THE MOST MYSTERIOUS--

THE EERIE FACES GAZING OUT FROM THE TEMPLE.

MORE THAN 200 OF THEM HOLD YOUR GAZE WHEREVER YOU LOOK.

SOME ARE MORE THAN 25 FEET HIGH, AND NO TWO ARE EXACTLY ALIKE.

BUT WHAT DO THE FACES MEAN?

ARE THEY MEANT TO BE GODS OR PEOPLE?

WERE THEY SCULPTED AS PORTRAITS, AND IF SO, OF WHOM?

THE ANSWERS ARE AS FASCINATING AND VARIED

AS THEY ARE CONTROVERSIAL.

ONE OF THE FIRST MODERN SCHOLARS TO STUDY THE BAYON

WAS GEORGES COEDES,

DIRECTOR OF THE FRENCH SCHOOL OF THE FAR EAST FOR 18 YEARS.

COEDES CLAIMED THAT THE FACES ON THE TOWERS

WERE THAT OF JAYAVARMAN VII HIMSELF,

PORTRAYED IN THE FORM OF THE BUDDHA.

THIS THEORY WAS ACCEPTED AS FACT FOR MANY YEARS.

BUT RECENTLY, PROMINENT JAPANESE SCHOLARS HAVE PROPOSED

AN ENTIRELY DIFFERENT EXPLANATION.

THEY CLAIM THE ROUND FACES WITH ALMOND-SHAPED EYES

ARE IN FACT DEVAS-- BENEVOLENT HINDU GODS.

WHILE FACES WITH ANGULAR FEATURES AND PROTRUDING EYES

ARE ASHURAS--EVIL HINDU DEITIES.

THESE SCHOLARS BELIEVE THE FACES WERE RE-CARVED

AFTER THE TIME OF JAYAVARMAN VII,

WHEN THE EMPIRE REVERTED BACK TO HINDUISM.

AND, IN FACT, MANY BUDDHIST ARTWORKS WERE DEFACED

OR DESTROYED DURING THIS ERA.

BUDDHIST STATUES WERE REMOVED FROM TEMPLES

AND HINDU STATUES WERE OFTEN ERECTED IN THEIR PLACE.

IF THE BAYON FACES PORTRAYED THE KING AS THE BUDDHA,

THEY, TOO, MAY HAVE BEEN DESTROYED.

FOR THE PAST CENTURY, BAYON HAS BEEN STUDIED AND RESTORED

BY A HOST OF SCHOLARS.

BUT THERE ARE STILL SOME 60,000 STONE BLOCKS

WHICH HAVE NOT YET FOUND THEIR FORMER PLACES.

SO, WHY IS BAYON IN MUCH WORSE CONDITION THAN ANGKOR WAT,

WHICH WAS CONSTRUCTED JUST 80 YEARS EARLIER?

A TEAM OF JAPANESE SCHOLARS

WHO HAVE BEEN RESTORING THE TEMPLE FOR 16 YEARS

BELIEVE IT HAS TO DO WITH THE STONE ITSELF.

ACCORDING TO RECENT RESEARCH,

THE ANCIENT BUILDERS USED STONES FROM SEVERAL DIFFERENT QUARRIES

TO BUILD THE TEMPLES IN ANGKOR,

DIGGING NEW QUARRIES AS OLDER ONES BECAME DEPLETED

OR HARD TO WORK.

SO PERHAPS BY THE TIME THE BAYON WAS CONSTRUCTED,

THE CHOICE OF STONE WAS MUCH MORE LIMITED.

Etsuo Uchida [translated]: THE TEMPLES THAT WERE BUILT BEFORE THE BAYON ERA

WERE BUILT WITH HIGH QUALITY GRAY SANDSTONE.

BUT AFTER THE LATE BAYON ERA,

HIGH QUALITY SANDSTONE DISAPPEARED,

AND THEY BEGAN USING SANDSTONE

WITH YELLOWISH BROWN AND RED MIXED IN IT.

BAYON TEMPLE WAS BUILT DURING THE LATE BAYON ERA,

AND THE SANDSTONE USED IN IT LACKS IN QUALITY

COMPARED TO TEMPLES THAT WERE BUILT A GENERATION BEFORE,

SUCH AS ANGKOR WAT.

Kwon: JAYAVARMAN VII FILLED THE ANGKOR REGION WITH TEMPLES

AND OTHER STRUCTURES.

HE ALSO DEVOTED CONSIDERABLE RESOURCES

TO EXPANDING THE CITY'S WATER SYSTEM.

THE KHMER'S INGENIOUS WATER MANAGEMENT

COMPENSATED FOR THE EXTREMES

OF THE REGION'S DISTINCT RAINY AND DRY SEASONS,

USING A COMPLEX NETWORK OF CANALS,

WATERWORKS AND RESERVOIRS.

RAINWATER WAS STORED IN PONDS, CALLED BARAYS,

THEN ACCESSED THROUGHOUT THE YEAR VIA CANALS.

ALTHOUGH ANGKOR THOM WAS LOCATED FAR INLAND,

IT WAS A CITY ON THE WATER.

YOU COULD TRAVEL BY BOAT THROUGH THE CANALS TO TONLE SAP LAKE,

AND THEN SAIL THE RIVER ALL THE WAY TO THE OCEAN.

THE KHMER EMPIRE'S SUCCESS AND PROSPERITY

DEPENDED, TO A LARGE EXTENT, ON ITS IRRIGATION SYSTEM.

THE CHINESE DIPLOMAT ZHOU DAGUAN REPORTED

THAT THE KHMER COULD PRODUCE

THREE OR EVEN FOUR RICE HARVESTS A YEAR,

ENOUGH TO FEED A MILLION PEOPLE.

HE ALSO DESCRIBED THE WET SEASON,

SAYING THAT THE HIGH WATER MARK AROUND LAKE TONLE SAP

COULD REACH 70 OR 80 FEET,

COMPLETELY SUBMERGING EVEN TALL TREES.

MODERN SCHOLARS OWE A GREAT DEAL TO ZHOU,

WHO WROTE ABOUT KHMER LIFE IN GREAT DETAIL.

HIS MEMOIRS DESCRIBE DAY-TO-DAY CITY LIFE,

THE ECONOMY, SOCIAL CUSTOMS,

AND EVEN THE KING'S RELATIONSHIP WITH HIS PEOPLE.

FOR EXAMPLE, ZHOU WROTE ABOUT

THE APPEARANCE OF THE KING'S PROCESSION IN THE YEAR 1296.

"WHEN THE KING WENT ON AN OUTING,

HE WAS ACCOMPANIED BY 300 TO 500 LADIES-IN-WAITING

CARRYING CANDLES IN THE DAYLIGHT.

HE WAS ESCORTED BY A PROCESSION OF HORSES, FLAGS AND A BAND,

AS WELL AS A RETINUE OF FEMALE WARRIORS.

THE KING, HIS QUEEN, AND HIS CONCUBINES

RODE PALANQUINS, COACHES, HORSES, AND ELEPHANTS.

AND THEY WERE SHELTERED FROM THE SUN

BY 100 PARASOLS DECORATED WITH GOLD.

THE TUSKS OF THE KING'S ELEPHANT WERE ORNAMENTED WITH GOLD,

AND THE KING CARRIED A SACRED SWORD IN HIS HAND.

HIS HANDS WERE PAINTED RED,

AND HE WAS SURROUNDED BY A BATTALION OF ELEPHANTS.

THERE WAS A GROUP OF WOMEN WHO SWEPT THE ROAD BEHIND THE KING

TO ERASE ANY TRACE OF THE ROYAL PROCESSION."

IF KING'S PROCESSION WAS IMPRESSIVE,

THEN HIS MILITARY RESOURCES WERE EVEN MORE FORMIDABLE.

THE ARMY INCLUDED A DIVISION OF 20,000 ELEPHANTS,

PLUS INFANTRY, CAVALRY, AND A DIVISION OF ARCHERS

WHO COULD SHOWER THE ENEMY WITH ARROWS.

EACH PLATOON CONSISTED OF 30 INFANTRYMEN

ARMED WITH SWORDS, HAND WEAPONS AND SHIELDS.

EVERY PLATOON ALSO HAD FIVE HORSES

AND ONE WELL-TRAINED ELEPHANT.

WOMEN WERE ALSO PART OF THE MILITARY.

THE ELITE ROYAL GUARD WAS ENTIRELY FEMALE,

AND WOMEN WARRIORS FOUGHT BESIDE MEN IN TIMES OF WAR.

AT THE START OF THE 13th CENTURY,

ANGKOR THOM AND ITS SURROUNDING AREA

WAS THE GREATEST CITY OF ITS TIME.

JAYAVARMAN VII HAD SUCCESSFULLY REVITALIZED THE KHMER EMPIRE,

IN PART THROUGH HIS IMPRESSIVE BUILDING PROJECTS.

BESIDES HIS TEMPLES,

HE EXPANDED THE SYSTEM OF HIGHWAYS

CONNECTING HIS CAPITAL CITY TO MANY OTHER PROVINCES.

HE ALSO BUILT 121 INNS AS WELL AS 102 HOSPITALS.

BEFORE JAYAVARMAN VII CAME TO POWER,

NEIGHBORING KINGDOMS SAW KHMER DISORDER

AS AN OPPORTUNITY TO EXPAND.

ONCE HE CAME TO POWER,

JAYAVARMAN VII STRENGTHENED HIS EMPIRE AND EXPANDED ITS REACH

THROUGH A SERIES OF MILITARY CAMPAIGNS.

INSCRIPTIONS DESCRIBE HIS CONQUEST

OF A NEIGHBORING TERRITORY--

"HIS ARMY INCLUDED A CAVALRY OF CHINESE HORSES,

A DIVISION OF ELEPHANTS, FEMALE SOLDIERS,

AND A FULL INFANTRY."

[CHANTING]

THE NEWLY IMPROVED HIGHWAYS OFFERED MORE EFFICIENT ROUTES

FOR MILITARY TRAVEL.

LONG PROCESSIONS OF SOLDIERS AND COMMANDERS

COVERED GREAT DISTANCES BY ROAD.

THE SCENE IS DEPICTED IN A GALLERY RELIEF IN THE BAYON.

THESE LONG MARCHES WERE COMPRISED

OF MORE THAN JUST SOLDIERS.

BECAUSE EACH CAMPAIGN LASTED YEARS

AND INVOLVED TENS OF THOUSANDS OF TROOPS,

MANY SOLDIERS BROUGHT ALONG THEIR FAMILIES.

IT WASN'T ONLY A MILITARY MOBILIZATION,

BUT A MASS MIGRATION.

JAYAVARMAN VII'S MILITARY CONQUESTS CHANGED THE HISTORY

OF BOTH THE KHMER EMPIRE AND ALL OF SOUTHEAST ASIA.

THERE ARE FEW RECORDS FROM LATE IN THE KING'S REIGN,

BUT HISTORIES RECORD THAT HE WAS A FIERCE OPPONENT

ON THE BATTLEFIELD.

ONE ACCOUNT STATES, "JAYAVARMAN VII SWORE AN OATH

TO TAKE REVENGE AGAINST HIS ENEMIES.

HE BORE THEIR IMPUDENCE FOR 18 YEARS

AND FINALLY SAW HIS PLANS TO FRUITION."

THE KHMER OFTEN OVERWHELMED THEIR ENEMIES

WITH A SWIFT CAVALRY AND A LARGE INFANTRY.

CHARGING ELEPHANTS NO DOUBT STRUCK FEAR

IN THE HEARTS OF THE ENEMY.

MUCH OF THE FIGHTING WAS CLOSE, HAND-TO-HAND COMBAT,

USING A SICKLE-LIKE WEAPON CALLED A PHKA'K.

KHMER TROOPS WERE RENOWNED AS WELL-TRAINED,

DETERMINED WARRIORS.

EVENTUALLY, THE KHMER EMPIRE STRETCHED

FROM WHAT IS NOW LAOS AND MUCH OF THAILAND IN THE NORTH

TO THE MALAY PENINSULA IN THE SOUTH,

BURMA IN THE WEST,

TO CENTRAL VIETNAM IN THE EAST,

ALMOST ALL OF MAINLAND SOUTHEAST ASIA.

JAYAVARMAN VII'S RULE STRENGTHENED AND EXPANDED

THE KHMER EMPIRE.

AND TO THIS DAY, CAMBODIANS REVERE HIM

AS ONE OF THEIR GREATEST RULERS.

IN THE CENTURIES SINCE HIS REIGN,

NATURE HAS OBSCURED HIS CAPITAL CITY,

THE PROUD CENTER OF A POWERFUL KHMER EMPIRE.

BUT THE LEGACY OF WHAT HE CREATED ENDURES.

THE STATELY TERRACE OF THE ELEPHANTS,

THE HAUNTING FACES OF BAYON TEMPLE,

AND THE MANY SYMBOLS OF A DEEP BUDDHIST FAITH

ALL CONTINUE TO INSPIRE VISITORS FROM AROUND THE WORLD.

TODAY, HUNDREDS OF MONKS STILL MAKE PILGRIMAGES TO ANGKOR THOM

TO LEARN, TEACH AND WORSHIP AS THEIR ANCESTORS DID.

THOUGH MODERN CONSERVATIONISTS CANNOT REVERSE

HUNDREDS OF YEARS OF NATURE'S ADVANCES,

THEY CAN HELP US IMAGINE

HOW THESE PALACES AND TEMPLES ONCE APPEARED,

AND HOW THEY SUPPORTED A VIBRANT AND THRIVING KHMER CIVILIZATION.

[CHANTING]

[CHEERING]

JAYAVARMAN VII WAS ONE OF THE GREATEST CONQUERORS

IN KHMER HISTORY.

HE CAME TO POWER WHEN HE WAS NEARLY 50

AND RULED FOR AT LEAST THREE DECADES.

DURING HIS REIGN,

HE DRAMATICALLY STRENGTHENED AND EXPANDED HIS EMPIRE.

BUT HE'S ALSO KNOWN IN MODERN CAMBODIA FOR ANOTHER REASON.

AS THE FIRST IMPORTANT BUDDHIST KING,

HE CHANGED THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN RULER AND RULED.

NOW, LIKE PREVIOUS HINDU RULERS,

JAYAVARMAN VII WAS STILL CONSIDERED A GOD-KING,

BUT HE ALSO REPORTEDLY CARED DEEPLY ABOUT HIS PEOPLE

AND STRIVED TO RELIEVE THEIR SUFFERING.

IT WAS DEFINITELY A CHANGE IN STYLE FROM EARLIER KHMER RULE.

AND 800 YEARS LATER,

HIS INFLUENCE ON HISTORY CAN STILL BE FELT.

TODAY BUDDHISTS, HINDUS, CAMBODIANS,

AND HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS OF PEOPLE WORLDWIDE

FLOCK FROM THE FARTHEST CORNERS OF THE GLOBE

TO EXPERIENCE THE SPLENDOR OF ANGKOR.

AND THOUGH THE KINGS WHO BUILT THESE ASTONISHING STRUCTURES

HAVE LONG SINCE PASSED,

IT IS THEIR TRIUMPHS THAT HAVE LEFT A GREAT LEGACY,

TEACHING US ABOUT THE PEOPLE OF THIS SPRAWLING EMPIRE

AND HOW THEIR EARLY ACCOMPLISHMENTS

HELPED SHAPE THE WORLD.