The Khmer Empire had its beginnings in 790 when King Jayavarman
conquered the Kingdom of Kambuja, until then under the Joke of the
Javanese. The consecration rites of Jayavarman on Mount Julen [ now in
Cambodia ] in 802 formalised the freeing of Kambuja from Java and the
introduction of the Hindu cult of the Devaraja [ God King ]
Hariharalaya was the name of the first settlement of the new Angkor
Kingdom and by 889 this Khmer Empire held control as far as Ubon in
Thailand.
By 944 after battles with the Cham people ,the Empire expanded to the
Annamite chain in the East [ now Vietnam ], Burma to the West and the
Gulf of Siam in the South. In the early 14th
C this Empire expanded and levied tribute from South Thailand. During
the reign of Jayavarman 7th from 1181-1220 the Khmer Empire expanded
further to include the Korat Plateau in I' san, the Menan Valley,
Southern Malaysia, Northern Laos and the Kingdom of
Champa. It was not until 1430 when the Ayutthayan Empire of the Tai
-Siamese sacked Angkor did the decline of the Khmer commence.
The Khmer had a presence in Central, East, some parts of the North and the Northeast of Thailand [ I 'san ] since the second half of 6th C. This presence lasted until the mid 13th
C. However the influences of Khmer styles, inspiration and iconography
continued long after. Where the Khmer were and when can be traced from
looking at the many stone inscriptions found throughout Thailand. These
are dated by the alphabet used, which was either ancient Khmer,
Pallava, Later Pallava, or Khmer and the language used which was either
Pali, Sanskrit [ both from India ] and Khmer.
Khmer presence can also be traced by art objects and architecture
ruins found in ancient sites. Scholars of art can classify art objects
by their subject matter and style such that they can be dated
precisely. The principal periods are the Pre-Angkor Period of 547-807 which
include 5 distinct and consecutive time periods, and the Angkorian
Period 827-1237 which includes 10 distinct and consecutive periods.
Thus monuments and sculptures distributed in these parts of Thailand
are dated.
A similar process is also available to identify utensils, ceramics, and household articles.
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