| Sambor Prei Kuk | |
| Native Name: | Central Khmer: សំបូរព្រៃគុហ៍ |
| Native Name Lang: | km |
| Alternate Name: | Isanapura |
| Relief: | yes |
| Coordinates: | 12.8708°N 105.0431°W |
| Map Dot Label: | Sambor Prei Kuk |
| Location: | Kampong Thom Province, Cambodia |
| Region: | Southeast Asia |
| Builder: | Isanavarman I |
| Built: | 7th century |
| Epochs: | Middle Ages |
Sambor Prei Kuk (Isanapura) (Central Khmer: សំបូរព្រៃគុហ៍, in Central Khmer pronounced as /sɑmboː prəj kuʔ/) is an archaeological site in Cambodia located in Kampong Thom Province, 300NaN0 north of Kampong Thom, the provincial capital, 1760NaN0 east of Angkor and 2060NaN0 north of Phnom Penh. The now ruined complex dates back to the Pre-Angkorian Chenla Kingdom (late 6th to 9th century), established by king Isanavarman I as central royal sanctuary and capital, known then as "Isanapura" (Central Khmer: ឦសានបុរៈ, in Central Khmer pronounced as /ʔəjsaːnɓoreaʔ/).[1] [2] In 2017, Sambor Prei Kuk was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site.[3]
Located on the Eastern bank of the Tonle Sap lake, close to the Steung Saen River, the central part of Sambor Prei Kuk is divided into three main groups. Each group has a square layout surrounded by a brick wall. The structures of the overall archaeological area were constructed at variable times: the southern and north groups (7th century) by Isanavarman I, who is considered a possible founder of the city[4] and the central group (later date). The buildings of Sambor Prei Kuk are characteristic of the Pre-Angkorean period with a simple external plan. The principal material is brick, but sandstone is also used for certain structures.[5] Architectural features include numerous prasats, octagonal towers, shiva lingams and yonis, ponds and reservoirs, and lion sculptures. Sambor Prei Kuk is located amidst mature sub-tropical forests with limited undergrowth. The area has been mined and could still contain unexploded ordnance.[6]
The whole compound is made of three clusters classified as group C for Central, N for North and S for South (Michon & Kalay, 2012). They are enclosed in a double-walled encircling 1,000 acre in which there were 150 Hindu temples today mostly in ruins.
Isanavarman I reigned over the Chenla Kingdom between 616 and 637 AD, taking Isanapura as his capital[9] and it is argued that he built the main temple Prasat Sambor (Group N), as there is an inscription on the site attributed to his reign and dated 13 September 627 AD.[10] The king is also known for sending his first embassy to the court of the Sui dynasty in China (616-617). Chenla conquered different principalities in the Northwest of Cambodia after the end of the Chinese reign period yǒnghuī (永徽) (i. e. after 31 January 656), which previously (in 638/39) paid tribute to China.[11] An inscription dating from the reign of Isanarvarman I claimed that he was, "the King of Kings, who rules over Suvarnabhumi".[12] Dr Vong Sotheara, of the Royal University of Phnom Penh, claimed that the inscription would "prove that Suvarnabhumi was the Khmer Empire."
The last important king in Isanapura was Jayavarman I, whose death caused turmoil to the kingdom at the start of the 8th century, breaking it in many principalities and opening the way to a new time: Angkor. This site is also claimed as an early capital of Jayavarman II (O'Reilly & Jacques, 1990).[13]
After the Lon Nol's coup d'état to Prince Norodom Sihanouk in 1970, US President Richard Nixon ordered a secret bombing of Cambodia to fight the Khmer Rouge guerrillas and any influence of North Vietnam in the country. The US aircraft bombed positions inside the archaeological site, causing craters near the temples, while the guerrillas left several mines on the land that were cleared only in 2008.
This site was added to the UNESCO World Heritage list on 8 July 2017.[14]
The official religion at Sambor Prei Kuk city was Shaivism, one of the four most widely followed ancient monotheist Dharmic religions which was retrospectively and erroneously included by the British Empire and British-educated Indian elites as a sect under the banner of Hinduism. It reveres the Shiva as the monotheist God and Supreme Being, and the Lingam (in Sanskrit लिङ्गं, liṅgaṃ, meaning "mark", "sign", or "inference") or Shiva linga representing Shiva to be worshiped in temples.[15] In Cambodia as it is in India, the lingam is a symbol of the energy and potential of god Shiva himself[16] and this phallic symbol is often represented with the Yoni (Sanskrit: योनि yoni, literally "womb"), symbol of goddess Shakti, female creative energy.[17]
Shaivism was the religion of Chenla (ca. 550 - ca. 800 AD), including elements of Shaivism, Buddhism and indigenous ancestor cults.[18] In the Sambor Prei Kuk temples, it is possible to contemplate stone inscriptions in both Sanskrit and Khmer, naming both Shaiva and local ancestral deities with Shiva and several altars with the lingam.