SOUTHEAST ASIA
The presence of a royal palace is widely seen as one of the indications of civilization. In Southeast Asia, palaces were built principally of wood and therefore have not survived. However, there is a continuous thread of evidence for their existence from the earliest state of funan (150-550 C. E.) to the duration of the kingdom of angkor. Two
Chinese emissaries who visited Southeast Asia during the third century C. E. described walled settlements and a palace. Some temples of the chenla period (550-800 C. E.) were decorated with what have been termed flying palaces. An example from ishanapura shows elevated and richly decorated pavilions with windows separated by columns. Figures can be seen within, presumably members of the aristocracy. The lintel of Wat En-Khna of the same period shows the enthroned king in his palace, surrounded by retainers. The description of a Chenla palace has survived in the writings of Ma Duanlin. The king gave an audience in a hall containing a wooden throne embellished with columns of inlaid wood and fine fabrics. At the Roluos Group (hariharalya) of indravarman i at Angkor, there is a raised rectangular area between the moat and the wall of the second enclosure at preah ko that might well be the foundation for the royal palace. Indravarman’s own inscription mentions his “lion throne, a vehicle, the palace Indravimanaka and a golden pavilion.”
Namasivaya was a royal herdsman with responsibility for the sacred cattle. it is recorded on an inscription that under jayavarman vi (r. 1080-1107 c. e.) he led the cattle in a procession around the royal palace. During the reign of JAYAVARMAN VII (1181-1219 C. E.), the royal palace lay north of the bayon, where today there is a walled precinct dominated by the temple of the phimeanakas. Tranquil basins lie between this temple and the northern enclosing wall. This area has recently been excavated, and huge wooden post foundations were encountered, presumably the foundations for the palace.
ZHOU DAGUAN in 1296-97 visited Angkor and described this palace as being set apart by its own walls and guards: “The Royal Palace lies to the north of the Golden Tower and east of the bridge of gold; its circumference is nearly 2.5 kilometers (1.5 mi.). The tiles of the central dwelling are of lead, other parts of the palace are covered in yellow pottery tiles. Lintels and columns, all decorated with carved or painted Buddhas, are immense. The roofs too, are impressive. Long colonnades and open corridors stretch away, interlaced in harmonious relation. in the chamber where the sovereign attends to affairs of state, there is a golden window. ... I have heard it said that within the palace are many marvelous sights.” Similar walled precincts around the royal palace may be seen today in phnom penh and Bangkok.
World History
