Khmer Architecture

In this episode, we explore the distinctive evolution of Khmer architecture during the Angkorian period, from the ninth to the fifteenth centuries. Discover how Indian religious ideas blended with local traditions to shape monumental sacred structures, including temple mountains designed to symbolize Mount Meru. We examine the use of brick, sandstone, and laterite, along with defining features such as bas-reliefs, corbelled arches, decorative lintels, apsaras, nagas, and kalas. The episode also traces the architectural impact of the Khmer Empire’s transition from Hinduism to Theravada Buddhism, considers the vanished wooden palaces and dwellings of everyday life, and highlights Angkor Wat as the crowning masterpiece of classical Khmer design.