The upper section contains the citadel; the lower incorporates a large palace, a royal mausoleum, a gymnasium, and a sanctuary temple. A Greek theater lies adjacent to the main road. The palace dominates the lower part of the city and covers an area of 350 by 250 meters (1,155 by 825 ft.). It has a huge courtyard surrounded by a portico whose columns have Corinthian-style capitals. Doric columns surround a smaller court in the palace proper.
EXCAVATIONS
Excavations have revealed an audience hall, residences with kitchens and bathrooms, and a treasury. The excavators recovered a large assemblage of treasure in this last structure, including items of carnelian, agate, rubies, TURQUOISE, and pearls. The massive gymnasium would have fulfilled both educational and recreational needs. It is 350 meters long and comprises a courtyard surrounded by rooms on all sides. The theater is a fascinating structure, modeled on the classical Greek antecedents, with an audience capacity of about 5,000. Unusually, it has a royal box, again emphasizing the role of Ay Khanum as a capital city There was also an arsenal, supporting the military function of such foundations.
Investigation of the houses revealed considerable opulence among the wealthier members of the community. Their houses were, for example, equipped with a suite of bathrooms with mosaic floors and plastered walls. The dead were interred in a cemetery beyond the city walls, but luminaries were buried within the city in temple mausolea, one of which received the remains of one Kineas, recorded as a founder of the city. The coins minted at Ay Khanum reveal that several Greek gods were worshiped, including Zeus, Apollo, and Athena. Other evidence of close relations with the West is seen in a silver medallion bearing an image of the goddess Cybele on a chariot, probably of Syrian origin, and a terra-cotta mold for manufacturing statuettes of the goddess of Demeter. Both date to the third century b. c.e.
The extensive excavations at this site also produced artifacts revealing the everyday activities of the inhabitants. The houses were equipped with milling stones of pure Greek design. There were also ink wells and wine presses, and the gymnasium had a Greek-style sundial. Statuary closely followed the Greek tradition, and ivory was carved into furniture decorations after Western models. The many bronze coins that have been discovered suggest that Ay Khanum flourished for two centuries until about 145 b. c.e., when it was abandoned and burned to the ground.
Aymonier, Etienne (1844-1929) Etienne (E.) Aymonier, an official in the French administration in Cambodia, traveled over much of Cambodia and Thailand, recording monuments and inscriptions.
In 1900, Aymonier published his findings in Le Cambodge in three volumes. These contain an inventory of all the known sites, illustrated with maps and plans. Because he was an epigrapher, he translated many of the inscriptions he found, with commentaries on their historic relevance. He was also interested in ethnography, and some of his illustrations are important records of rural Cambodian life at the end of the 19th century See also angkor.
Ayodhya Ayodhya is a famous site, described in the Indian epic the Ramayana as the capital of the hero Rama himself. Excavations of this high and substantial mound have revealed a late prehistoric occupation period, dating around 700 b. c.e., in which houses were made of mud brick. occupation continued into the historic period, during which houses were now made of fired bricks. There is a lacuna in occupation between about 400 and 1000 C. E., but this may represent limited archaeological sampling, because it is recorded that two Chinese monks, XUANZANG and FAXIAN, visited the site during those centuries. It has recently seen much friction between Hindus and Muslims over the sanctity of their respective temples.
World History
