Angkor Wat

Timeline

1. Early 9th c.

   Khmer Empire founded

   Jayavarman II founds the Khmer Empire in the Angkor region and proclaims the Devaraja (god-king) cult that will define the dynasty.

2. c.1113

   Construction begins

   Suryavarman II begins Angkor Wat as a Hindu state temple to Vishnu and his own future mausoleum, marking the empire's golden age.

3. c.1150

   Temple completed

   After roughly three decades the temple is essentially complete with its 5.4 km moat and five-tower central sanctuary on a three-tiered platform.

4. Late 12th c.

   Buddhist turn

   Jayavarman VII converts the empire to Mahayana Buddhism and builds Angkor Thom and the Bayon, beginning Angkor Wat's gradual reconsecration.

5. 13-14th c.

   Theravada conversion

   Theravada Buddhism spreads and Angkor Wat is reconsecrated as a Buddhist temple; Vishnu images in the central sanctuary become Buddhas.

6. 1431

   Sack of Angkor

   Ayutthaya forces from Siam sack Angkor and the Khmer court moves south toward Phnom Penh, leaving most of the city to the encroaching jungle.

7. 1860

   Mouhot's account

   French naturalist Henri Mouhot's posthumous travel writings introduce Angkor Wat to a European readership and trigger Western interest in the site.

8. 1907

   EFEO restoration

   The École française d'Extrême-Orient launches systematic conservation of Angkor under French Indochina, beginning long-term archaeological work.

9. 1953

   Flag emblem

   Cambodia gains independence and adopts Angkor Wat as the central emblem of its national flag, the only flag in the world depicting a building.

10. December 1992

    World Heritage Site

    UNESCO inscribes Angkor on the World Heritage List and simultaneously on the Endangered list because of war damage, looting and landmine risk.

11. 2004

    Off the danger list

    Conservation by JICA, Sophia University, India's ASI and others — combined with demining — earns Angkor's removal from the World Heritage in Danger list.

12. 2024

    Tourism rebound

    After the COVID downturn, annual visitors return to roughly 2 million; the new Siem Reap International Airport (2023) improves international access.

Detailed History

Construction of Angkor Wat began around 1113 under Suryavarman II (r.1113-c.1150), the king who restored Khmer hegemony after a period of weakness. Designed as both a state temple to Vishnu and the king's future mausoleum, it features a 5.4 km outer moat and a three-tiered platform topped by a central sanctuary surrounded by four towers — a Hindu cosmological diagram of Mount Meru and its companion peaks. Some 5-10 million tons of sandstone were quarried 30 km away in the Kulen Hills (Phnom Kulen), then floated and dragged to the site over roughly three decades. The temple remained a religious center after Suryavarman's death around 1150, and under his successor Jayavarman VII (r.1181-c.1218) the Khmer Empire converted to Mahayana Buddhism and built Angkor Thom and the Bayon. From the late 13th to the 15th centuries Theravada Buddhism gradually displaced Hinduism, and Angkor Wat was reconsecrated as a Buddhist temple — Vishnu images replaced by Buddha images in the central sanctuary. In 1431 Ayutthaya forces from Siam sacked the Khmer capital, the court moved south to the Phnom Penh region and most of Angkor was abandoned to the jungle, but Angkor Wat itself remained continuously occupied by Buddhist monks. European awareness grew through 19th-century explorers; the French naturalist Henri Mouhot's 1860 account brought the temple to the West, and the École française d'Extrême-Orient (EFEO) began systematic conservation under French Indochina from 1907. Cambodia became independent in 1953 and adopted Angkor Wat on its national flag, the only nation whose flag depicts a building. Civil war and the Khmer Rouge regime (1970-1991) inflicted neglect, looting and landmine damage, and Angkor was inscribed on both the World Heritage and Endangered lists in 1992. International conservation by JICA, Sophia University, the Indian government and others stabilized the site; Angkor was removed from the danger list in 2004. Today Angkor Wat draws over 2 million visitors a year, generating roughly 25 percent of Cambodia's tourism revenue. The new Siem Reap International Airport opened in 2023 30 km east of town, expanding international access and easing pressure on the old terminal.

Cultural Significance

Angkor Wat embodies the religious layering of Hinduism and Buddhism across centuries and stands as Cambodia's central national symbol. UNESCO inscribed Angkor in 1992 under criteria (i)(ii)(iii)(iv): (i) for the masterpiece of Khmer architecture, (ii) for the synthesis of Indian cosmology with Khmer style, (iii) for testimony to the great Khmer civilization and (iv) as a supreme religious city plan. Since independence in 1953 Angkor Wat has appeared on Cambodia's national flag, the only nation whose flag depicts a building. It saturates daily life — currency notes, hotel decor, souvenirs — as both heritage anchor and tourism mainstay. The 800-meter bas-reliefs reading the Ramayana and Mahabharata make Angkor Wat the supreme 'storybook temple' of Southeast Asia, the highest realization of myth carved in stone. Khmer New Year (Choul Chnam Thmey) in mid-April brings local pilgrims for traditional rites and is also peak heat and crowding for foreign visitors. Civil-war landmines, especially in surrounding ruins, mean stepping off marked paths is forbidden; demining continues in the broader park. Buddhist worshippers pray at Buddha images in the central sanctuary, and visitors should remove hats and remain quiet — Angkor Wat is a living temple as well as a museum.

Architectural Details

Angkor Wat occupies a rectangular precinct of about 200 hectares (1,500 m × 1,300 m) surrounded by a 190-meter-wide moat that extends 5.4 km in circumference. Uniquely among major Angkorian temples it faces west — usually associated with funerary symbolism — and the western causeway, the main entrance, runs 348 meters with naga balustrades on either side. The central sanctuary stands 65 meters above ground (42 meters above the upper platform) and the five lotus-bud towers represent Mount Meru and its four supporting peaks. Building materials include some 5-10 million tons of sandstone quarried 30 km away in the Kulen Hills and floated by canal and river, plus laterite for foundations. The first gallery wraps the platform with about 800 meters of continuous bas-relief: the western wing depicts Mahabharata and Ramayana battles; the southern wing shows Suryavarman II's army on the march and a vivid Hindu Last Judgment with heaven and hell scenes; the eastern wing carries the famous Churning of the Sea of Milk creation myth (88 asuras and 92 devas pulling the serpent Vasuki); the northern wing depicts Krishna's exploits. The second and third galleries surround the central sanctuary, and 1,718 apsara (celestial dancer) figures are carved on the upper level alone, each with distinctive hairstyle and ornaments — a signature element of Khmer realism in stone.