Banteay Chhmar

Book excerpt: ***DELAYED PUBLICATION - NEW COVER*** Banteay Chhmar is the second monument of ancient Cambodia's greatest king, Jayavarman VII. This temple, built in the late 12th-Century by one of Cambodia's most original stone carving and architectural workshops, lay in ruins for almost a thousand years under a remote forest halfway between Angkor, the declining capital of the once mighty Khmers and Ayutthaya, the burgeoning new hub of the rising Thai kingdom. At first the remoteness of Banteay Chhmar made it the distant jewel in the magnificent monumental landscape of the Khmers, but after the Khmer Empire declined in the 14th century, the temple's art was left exposed to generations of looters. To uncover the secrets of this large, beautiful and still forest-draped complex, Peter Sharrock has brought together a team of international experts, including Claudes Jacques, Olivier Cunin and Thiery Zephir, to decipher the reliefs of the master carvers, identify the esoteric Buddhist deities and open a new vista on Jayavarman's reign. Lavishly illustrated with 300 specially-commissioned photographs this is the first book devoted to this beautiful, remarkable and important temple. AUTHOR: Dr Peter D. Sharrock is Senior Teaching Fellow in the History of Art and Archaeology at London University's School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS). He experienced the American war in Indochina for four years as the Reuters correspondent and discovered how, as the French said, Indochina 'attaches to the skin'. His doctorate and subsequent publications are on a new interpretation of the esoteric Buddhism and imperial politics of the greatest king of ancient Cambodia, Jayavarman VII, as expressed through the art and architecture of the 'Bayon style' named after the Bayon temple in Angkor. His current research explores Jayavarman's empire beyond Angkor - including his second greatest temple complex of Banteay Chhmar. SELLING POINTS: * First title to be devoted to this important and beautiful temple * Contains contributions from the world's leading Khmer scholars * Features over 300 specially commissioned photographs * Banteay Chhmar is likely to see ever-increasing tourist visits in the next few years and is seeking UNESCO World Heritage Site status * The temple has seen perhaps the worst looting of any temple: as recently as 1999 over 100 sandstone pieces of the Western Gallery were recovered by Thai police following looting 300 colour illustrations