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SOUR PRAT
The
Tower of the cord dancers
Prasat
Sour Prat is located at the beginning of the road leading to the Gate of Victory of
Angkor Thom ;
1,200 meters (3,937 feet) in front of Phimeanakas. A enter and leave the towers from the road at the east.
It was built in the end of the 12th century
by the King Jayavarman VII, replica to Bayon style of art.
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BACKGROUND
The purpose of these towers is a
source of some controversy. According to a Cambodian legend, the towers swerved
as anchoring places for ropes which stretched from one to another for acrobats
performing at festivals, festivals, while the king observed the performances
from one of the terraces. This activity is reflected in the name of the towers.
Zhou Daguan wrote about an entirely different purpose of the towers in
describing a method of settling disputes between men.
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Twelve little stone towers stand in
front of the royal palace. Each of the contestants is forced to de seated in one
of the towers, with his relatives standing guard over him. They remain
imprisoned two, three, or four days. When allowed to emerge, one of them will be
found to be suffering saome illness- ulcers, of catarrh, or malignant fever. The
other man will be in perfect health. Thus is right or wrong determined by what
is called 'celestial judgment'
Henri Mouhot wrote that the towers were 'said to have been the royal treasure..
It served, they, as a depository for the crewels. Another theory is that they
may have served as an altar for each province on the occasion of the taking of
the oath of loyalty to the king
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LAYOUT
Prasat Suor Prat is a row of 12
square laterite and sandstone towers, six on either side of the road leading to
Angkor Thom, parallel to the front of the terraces. The two
towers closest to the road are back slightly from the others.
The towers are connected by galleries and are of similar style
and construction. The towers have an unusual feature of windows
with balusters on three sides.
Entrance porches open toward
the square and the road to the Gate of Victory of the city of Angkor Thom. These
features support the theory that these towers were used as some sort of viewing
area, reserved for princes or dignitaries, on to the large square of the Royal
Palace, The interior of each tower has two levels and two levels and on the
upper one there is a cylindrical vault with two pediments. The frames, bays and
lintels were made of sandstone. See map page 80.
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THE ANGKOR ARCHEOLOGICAL COMPLEX LIST |
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National Museum
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Recommended Tour Packages:
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