Khleang

From Beyond Angkor
Jump to navigation Jump to search

For the temple, see Prasat Khleang Khang Cheung and Prasat Khleang Khang Thbong


The Khleang architectural category - named after the pair of Angkor Thom khleangs - covers a wide time frame and a broad grouping of styles. The term khleang in Khmer translates roughly as storehouse and many such pavilions can be found associated with 11th-century temple sites. (Their exact purpose is still debated although how 2 relatively insignificant structures gave their name to a wide art style including some of the most remarkable Angkor monuments is also a mystery to us.)

The period corresponds to the reigns of Jayavarman V, Udayadityavarman I, Jayaviravarman and Suryavarman I covering the mid-10th to mid-11th centuries. The latter king was a particularly prolific builder and responsible for numerous sites across a wide geographical range. This unmanageable category could be subdivided, for convenience sake, into a late 10th-century Ta Keo style, typified by Jayavarman V's massive sandstone pyramid Prasat Ta Keo (Siem Reap) itself and Suryavarman I's Late Khleang - early 11th-century - smaller scale temple sites. Despite their profusion, there is a certain degree of homogeneity in the latter king's constructions, albeit with a strong tendency to reuse older elements, and a site such as Prasat Ek Phnom, in many ways could be seen as a typical example.

Overall the period displays fully integral covered galleries - in the cases of Ta Keo and Phimeanakas, placed atop pyramid style constructions - with 'libraries' and gopuras, while the Ta Keo period sees the widespread use of sandstone.

Suryavarman I sites stretch from Prasat Phnom Chisor in the south to additions at Prasat Preah Vihear and Wat Phu in the north while isolated sandstone towers dating to this period are widespread across the range. Sites such as Chisor are eclectic in style and remodel existing older structures as well as reusing older lintels. (The site displays sandstone, brick, and laterite shrines.) Reliefs tend to be heraldic with a central deity although narrative reliefs such as the Churning of the Sea of Milk and various Krishna scenes are commonly seen. A curious substyle, generally assigned to the same king, is the cartoon-like narrative lintels seen at, for example, Prasat Kok Roka (Kampong Thom) and Prasat Snoeng Khang Lech. Perhaps due to the sheer number of constructions, certain haste, lack of attention to detail with simplified reliefs can be seen in this period.

As we said, a (too) broad and confusing category.


Map Keys
Large Prasat
 Large Prasats
Arogyasala
 Arogyasalas
Large Ruin
 Large Ruins
Dharmasala
 Dharmasalas
Medium Prasat
 Medium Prasats
Ancient Bridge
 Ancient Bridges
Medium Ruin
 Medium Ruins
Ancient City
 Ancient Cities
Medium Tuol
 Medium Tuols
Ancient Kiln
 Ancient Kilns
Prasat
 Small Prasats
Ancient Quarry
 Ancient Quarries
Small Ruin
 Small Ruins
Ancient Reservoir
 Ancient Reservoirs
Small Tuol
 Small Tuols
Ancient Village
 Ancient Villages
Museum
 Museums
Carvings
 Carvings
Depository
 Depositories
Other Structures
 Other Structures
Wat
 Wats
Prehistoric
 Prehistoric Sites
Neak Ta
 Neak Ta's
Unknown
 Unknown Sites
Unconfirmed
 Unconfirmed Sites


  • Shiva (?) lintel and Vishnu pediment from Ek Phnom

    Shiva (?) lintel and Vishnu pediment from Ek Phnom

  • Chisor doorway featuring a lintel with central deity, kala and makaras and Siva and Uma on Nandi pediment

    Chisor doorway featuring a lintel with central deity, kala and makaras and Siva and Uma on Nandi pediment

  • Prasat Ek Phnom

    Prasat Ek Phnom

  • Churning of the Sea of Milk from Prasat Snoeng Khang Lech

    Churning of the Sea of Milk from Prasat Snoeng Khang Lech

  • Double register lintel from Enkosei with Indra on Airavata, (lower register) and Sea of Milk scene above.

    Double register lintel from Enkosei with Indra on Airavata, (lower register) and Sea of Milk scene above.

  • Chisor lintel

    Chisor lintel

  • The Ta Keo pyramid temple

    The Ta Keo pyramid temple

Retrieved from "https://beyondangkor.org/index.php?title=Khleang&oldid=60109"