The stone monarch is absolutely naked, his hair is plaited
and he sits in the Javanese fashion. The legs are too short for the torso, and
the forms, much too rounded, lack the strong protuberances of manly muscles; but,
however glaring are his defects, he has many beauties, and as a study of
character he is perhaps the masterpiece of Khmer sculpture. Whilst his body is
at rest his soul boils within him.
Terrace of Leper King
His features are full of passion, with thick lips, energetic
chin, full cheeks, aquiline nose and clear brow... his mouth, slightly open, showing
the teeth. this peculiarity of the teeth being shown in a smile is absolutely
and strangely unique in Cambodian art.
Terrace of the Leper King is located immediately north of
the Terrace of the Elephants and it can be accessed from the main road. It was
built at end of the 12th century by king Jayavarman VII (reigned 1181-1220)
BACKGROUND
The terrace of the Leper King carries on the theme of
grandeur that characterises the building during Jayavarman VII's reign. It is
faced with dramatic bas-reliefs, both on the interior and exterior. During
clearing, the EFEO found a second wall with bas-relief similar in composition
to those of the outer wall.
Some archaeologists believe that this second wall is
evidence of a late rites, two meters wide of laterite faced with sandstone. It
collapsed and a second wall of the materials, two meters wide, was built right
in front of it without any of the rubble being cleared. Recently, the EFEO has
created a false corridor which allows visitor to inspect the relief on the
first wall.
LEPER KING
The curious name of this terrace refers to a statue of the
Leper King that is on the platform of the terrace. The one you see today is a
copy. The original is in the court-yard of the National
Museum in Phnom Penh . the figure is depicted in a
seated position with his right knee raised, a position some art historians
consider to be Javanese-style. Its nakedness is unusual in Khmer art.
Who was the Leper King ? Mystery and uncertainty surround
the origin of the name. The long-held theory that Jayavarman VII was a leper
and that is why he built so many hospitals throughout the empire has no historical
support whatsoever. Some historians think the figure represents Kubera, god of
wealth, or Yasovaraman I, both of whom were allegedly lepers.
Another ideas is based on an inscription that appears on the
statue in characters of the 14th or 15th century which may be translated as the
equivalent of the assessor of Yama, god of death or of judgment. Yet another
theory suggests that the Leper King statue got its name because of the lichen
which grows on it. The position of the hand, now missing, also suggests it was
holding something.
Coedès believes that most of the Khmer monuments were
funerary temples and that the remains of kings were deposited there after
cremation. He thinks, therefore, that the royal crematorium was located on the
Terrace of the Leper King. The statues, then, represents the god of death and
is properly situated on the terrace to serve this purpose. Yet another theory
derives from a legend in a Cambodian chronicle that tells of a minister who
refused to prostrate before the king, who hit him with his sword. Venomous
spittle fell on the king, who then became a leper and was called the Leper King
thereafter.
