LEARN NC

K–12 teaching and learning · from the UNC School of Education

Geometry of a perfected world
In East from India: Cambodia and Southern Vietnam, page 9
Many Hindu and Buddhist Southeast Asian temples were designed as a mandala, usually with square nested walls and passages leading past deity images towards a high central tower. This view from the main causeway over the moat toward the west face of Angkor...
By Lorraine Aragon.
Two girls by illuminated doorway view of central tower at Angkor Wat
Two girls by illuminated doorway view of central tower at Angkor Wat
Two girls can be seen at the left of an illuminated doorway view of the central tower at Angkor Wat. The two girls and the silhouette of another child seen in the doorway are in shadow, while the tiered Angkor Wat tower is bathed in distant sunlight. The image...
Format: image/photograph
Three men walk on causeway over moat leading to Angkor Wat
Three men walk on causeway over moat leading to Angkor Wat
Three men walk in the foreground on the causeway over a moat towards Angkor Wat. The front columns, tiered walls, and three of the five central towers are visible in the distance.
Format: image/photograph
Several people stand along the steps to the central tower at Angkor Wat
Several people stand along the steps to the central tower at Angkor Wat
Several people stand at different heights along the stone stairs to the central tower at Angkor Wat. One young man wearing shorts descends the steep steps in the middle. Four others stand at the railings to keep their balance at this high elevation.
Format: image/photograph
View from causeway into Angkor Wat with tiers rising to five central towers
View from causeway into Angkor Wat with tiers rising to five central towers
A view from the main causeway over the moat toward the west face of Angkor Wat shows how the monument's tiers rise upward to the five central towers. Four of the towers are set in a perfect square around the center one that symbolizes Mount Meru, home of the...
Format: image/photograph
Three men on steep stone stairway leading to central tower at Angkor Wat
Three men on steep stone stairway leading to central tower at Angkor Wat
Three men walk high up on the steep stone stairway that leads to the central tower at Angkor Wat. The photograph is taken from below showing how steep and difficult the climb to the inner temple towers is.
Format: image/photograph
The inner temple
In East from India: Cambodia and Southern Vietnam, page 12
This arched inner temple hallway at Angkor Wat is lined with stone statues including a tall Buddha, seen towards the middle here. Several of the statues, even a headless one towards the front, are wrapped diagonally across their chests with gold or orange...
By Lorraine Aragon.
Reclaimed by the forest
In East from India: Cambodia and Southern Vietnam, page 16
Ta Prohm was built as a double-moated, royal monastery during the reign of Jayavarman VII at the end of the twelfth century. As a Mahayana Buddhist, the king dedicated the monument to his mother envisioned as a "bodhisattva" or saint of compassion. The images...
By Lorraine Aragon.
East from India: Cambodia and Southern Vietnam
Photographs and text tell the story of the Cham and Khmer cultures of southern Vietnam and Cambodia, including a look at Angkor Wat and other great temples and cities.
Format: slideshow (multiple pages)
Inner temple hallway lined with stone statues including Buddha at Angkor Wat
Inner temple hallway lined with stone statues including Buddha at Angkor Wat
An arched inner temple hallway at Angkor Wat is lined with stone statues including a tall Buddha, seen towards the middle here. Several of the statues, even a headless one towards the front, are wrapped diagonally across their chests with gold or orange sashes....
Format: image/photograph
Dancing deities
In East from India: Cambodia and Southern Vietnam, page 11
The asparas in mirror image stances balance on one bent leg in active positions typical of classical Southeast Asian dances. One hand is held above the head and the other in front of the chest with their wrists and fingers stretched...
By Lorraine Aragon.
Angkor Wat
In East from India: Cambodia and Southern Vietnam, page 8
Angkor was the royal capital of the Khmer empire from 802–1431 CE. Angkor's long-lasting prosperity was based on the local abundance of three resources: water, fish, and the rice crops grown on soil nourished by...
By Lorraine Aragon.
Seven headed serpent forming stone balustrade at Angkor Wat
Seven headed serpent forming stone balustrade at Angkor Wat
A seven-headed serpent or "naga" forms a stone balustrade beside a walkway leading into a building at Angkor Wat. The naga, literally "serpent" in Sanskrit, represents power, water, and fertility in many Hindu texts. Khmer adopted the...
Format: image/photograph
View outward over walled complex from top of central tower at Angkor Wat
View outward over walled complex from top of central tower at Angkor Wat
This view looks outward over walled complex from the top of the central tower at Angkor Wat. Stone reliefs, visitors, the causeway entrance, and bright green forest in the distance are visible from this vantage point. This elevated image over the stone roofs,...
Format: image/photograph
Carved relief of four dancing female divinities with spiked crowns at Angkor Wat
Carved relief of four dancing female divinities with spiked crowns at Angkor  Wat
Four dancing female divinities with spiked crowns appear together on a carved stone bas-relief at Angkor Wat. These dancing female divinities (each called an "apsaras") are said to be created for the entertainment of the Hindu gods. They often are recognizable...
Format: image/photograph
Great City
In East from India: Cambodia and Southern Vietnam, page 13
The images represent a Hindu myth of creation called the Churning of the Sea of Milk. On one side of the causeway, fifty-four guardian deities (called devas) pull the head of a mythical serpent or "naga." On the other side, fifty-four images of...
By Lorraine Aragon.
Cambodian flag flies above metal roof of building near Siem Reap
Cambodian flag flies above metal roof of building near Siem Reap
A Cambodian flag flies above the corrugated metal roof of a building near Siem Reap. The Cambodian flag has three horizontal, colored bands. The top and bottom bands are blue, and the double-width middle band is red. Centered in the red band is a black-outlined,...
Format: image/photograph
Dancing music in Cambodia, near Ta Promh
This is a musical excerpt recorded in the Angkor Wat temple complex in northern Cambodia. Angkor Wat is the name of an important temple built by the ancient Khmer civilization, but also has also come to refer to the expanse of temples in northern Cambodia...
Format: audio
Schoolchildren learn lessons, Angkor Wat
This is a recording of children reciting their lessons in a one-room schoolhouse located among the ruins of an ancient Khmer civilization in Cambodia. The schools in Cambodia vary, but some rural schools are like early American schools. One teacher teaches...
Format: audio
Flag of Cambodia
Flag of Cambodia
The national flag of Cambodia has three horizontal stripes, blue, red, and blue. The middle red stripe is twice as wide as the blue stripes and features a depiction of Angkor Wat in the center, in white with red outlines. Since around 1850, the Cambodian flag...
Format: image/illustration