Gallery: the ruins of Angkor in black and white

Angkor is perhaps the greatest of Man’s essays in rectangular architecture that has yet been brought to life

Arnold J. Toynbee, historian

Although Angkor Wat is the most famous sight in Angkor, it is not the only one by any means, despite the fact that the two names are often used interchangeably. Angkor in fact means ‘city’ and Angkor Wat the ‘city temple’. But there are over a thousand temples, ranging in scale from mere piles of rubble scattered through rice fields to Angkor Wat itself.

I’m repeating myself with that statement, which first appeared in my post about Angkor Thom.  It bears repeating, as a reminder of the scale of what was achieved here. We only had time to visit a handful of the temples, but one thing that struck me at all those we saw was the incredible detail in the relief carvings. I thought for this week’s theme-free Monochrome Madness I would see how these looked in black and white. Why? Because monochrome is often good at highlighting texture and detail, and also because they are naturally of a single colour, i.e. ‘monochrome’.

Some of these details have appeared here before, but in colour. Others should be new to you, I hope. Among them you’ll see several examples of the many devata or apsara relief carvings. These are depictions of beautiful women, with ornate hairdos and jewellery, and bare-breasted. I’ve seen different explanations of the difference between the two, but the most common seems to be that apsaras are the dancing figures while devatas are standing still, facing forward as guardians of the temples. So that’s the explanation I’ve adopted.

Above an entrance door in Angkor Wat

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From the Churning of the Sea of Milk relief in the East Gallery, Angkor Wat

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Devatas in the Upper Gallery, Angkor Wat

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Early morning lights on a devata in the Upper Gallery, Angkor Wat

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Relief showing generals riding elephants and foot
soldiers, Bayon Temple
My feature photo was also taken here and shows a pig stuck in the wheels of a cart

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A family on foot, Bayon Temple

The woman is carrying a baby on her back, while bottom left you can see a man blowing on a fire beneath a cooking pot

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A woman giving birth beneath a table, Bayon Temple

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Monkeys picking coconuts as soldiers march beneath, Bayon Temple

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On the south gate of Angkor Thom

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The Terrace of the Leper King, Angkor Thom

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Above a lintel at Ta Prohm

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Devata at Ta Prohm

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Apsaras at Banteay Kdei

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Devatas at Banteay Kdei

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Devatas at Banteay Kdei

I visited Angkor in February 2020