|
Silver Pagoda (Vihear Preah Keov Mokorot)
The temple of the Silver Pagoda or Vihear Preah Keo Mokorot "Temple of the Emerald Buddha" was constructed in 1892 out of wood during the rule King Norodom who had been inspired by the Wat Phra Keo in the Royal Grand Palace grounds in Bangkok. However the pagoda was later replaced by cement and concrete in 1962 by King Norodom Sihanouk who was King Norodom's descendant. The wall surrounding the Silver Pagoda contains murals depicting the epical saga of the Reamker which is the Khmer version of the Indian Ramayana which was painted around the 1900 century. The epical saga begins just south of the east gate. Sadly some sections of the walls have deteriorated. Yet it is still a colourful reminder of royal palace ground's glory of a rich past.
|
|
|
A scene from the Reamker mural |
The floors of the Silver pagoda as the name suggests the floor is actually covered in silver tiles each weighing about more than 1 kg and there are five hundred of them or weighing five tonnes in total. As one would walk through the pagoda one could feel the shifting of the tiles or the tinkling sounds because some of them have been broken. The contents of the pagoda are pretty well preserved, even though about 60% was actually destroyed under Pol Pot. What was left is the embodiment of Khmer art for the whole world to see and it's value since under Pol Pot the cultural side of Cambodia had suffered badly from their destruction. As one walked into the Silver Pagoda and other pavilions one would hear the ubiquitous sound of the pin-peat orchestra playing ceremonial or monastic music which gave it that royal or religious atmosphere about the whole place which I found to be very warming and welcoming as well as sacred and ceremonial. |
|
|
|
|
Each glass display cabinet or case contains swords and gifts from foreign countries to Cambodia. What I found was a Balinese kris made it's way into the display case mounted with the other swords of Khmer origin. The Balinese kris might have been a gift from President Sukarno when he visited Cambodia. Swords, personal regalia's such as golden vessels, personal jewellery, headdresses, masks and coiffeurs worn by the royal Cambodian dance troupe which were all fashioned out of gold. Most of the artefacts and regalia showed a high quality of skill that was involved when producing the wonderful and intricate motifs that I saw with the personal items such as bracelets showing the delicate and intricate filigree that make it so breathtaking that is often seen in Khmer art.
Shrines inside the Silver Pagoda
|
|
|
Two solid golden Buddha adorned with exquisite jewels, both are in the meditating position. |
Golden Buddha in a meditating position |
|
|
|
|
Preah Keov Mokorot (The Emerald Buddha) |
The Silver pagoda contains a large collection of Buddha
images crafted from gold, silver, jade or wood and stone. The
images number in their thousands. Most of the Buddha statues are made
either as standing, meditating or reclining images and with different hand
gestures. Also the style can vary with some Buddha statues made with
simple attires while others are richly adorned with elaborate fittings. Some were gifts made to the pagoda from
royal dignitaries.
At the centre, inside the pagoda sitting high on a gilt dais is a large shrine in the form of a royal or holy shrine is the superb Emerald Buddha. The Emerald Buddha was said to have been made somewhere in the 17th century and is made from Baccarat crystal. The Emerald Buddha is said to be the most revered in Cambodia like the Emerald Buddha in the Grand Palace in Bangkok which is also said to be the most holiest and most revered in all of Thailand.
|
|
|
|
|
At the front of the Emerald Buddha shrine is another tall glass shrine containing a life size statue gold of the future Buddha studded with 9584 diamonds, the largest of which weighs about 25 carats. The statue was created in the palace workshops during 1906 and 1097, by King Sisowath under the royal request of his late brother King Norodom. At that time the late King Norodom's royal request was "After being blessed the holy flames, your Royal Majesty (King Sisowath) must take my golden cremation urn to have it melted and cast into one image of the Buddha to represent Preah Srey Arm Meh Trey". The actual statue with it's diamonds weigh a total of some 90 kg. The statue of the golden Buddha studded with exquisite gems is dressed in the royal regalia that would have been worn by kings or deities in heaven as well as the Royal Court dance troupe. Directly in front of this shrine, in a Formica case, is a miniature silver and gold stupa containing a relic of Buddha brought from Sri Lanka. To the left is an 80 kg bronze Buddha, and to the right is a silver Buddha. On the far right, figurines of solid gold tell the story of Buddha. |
|
|
|
|
|
A gilded standing Buddha wooden |
Behind the Emerald Buddha shrine is a standing marble Buddha from Burma (Myanmar) and also royal palanquin (portable bed) used by the king himself and is transported by 14 men. Some parts of the royal palanquin is made of gold weighing about 23 kg. The palanquin would be used by the king on coronation day and other royal ceremonies. To either side of the palanquin are the silver models of King Norodom's stupa and Wat Preah Keo's library. At the back of the hall is a case containing two gold Buddhas, each decorated with diamonds weighing up to 16 carats; the lower figure weighs 4.5 kg, the upper 1.5 kg. The Royal Palace and the Silver pagoda has to be one of the most exquisite collection housing some of the most finest Khmer art that I have ever seen. It was very lucky to have survived under the Pol Pot regime, since the regime's aim was to seek and destroy anything from the past, thus everything that the artisans painstaking created had little value under the Khmer Rouges concept. Compared with some art forms the Silver Pagoda's contents are almost intact while others are gone forever. Heritage is a valuable asset for everyone but can be very fragile. Once lost or destroyed it can never be brought back. |
|
|
|
|
Solid silver standing Buddha |
standing marble Buddha from Burma (Myanmar) |
|
|
|
|
In the Silver Pagoda compound there are also several other structures
including the Mondap which is the the south. The Mondap is a
library containing sacred Buddhist texts written on palm leaves, that are
much similar to the lontar palm books or Bali. The long leaves of
the tnout or sugar palm also known as lontar palm or toddy
palm (borassus flabelformis) is dried and bleach then cut into long
strips of 5 cm wide and 50 cm in length. The dried leaves are then etched
with a sharp stylus the monks would engrave on the leaves, later a mixture
of soot and vegetable dye would be rubbed over the the etching. When
wiping away the excess mixture the etching appears like engravings on the
long bleached leaves. Finally the leaves have holes punched into them and
strung as books that can be quite thick in volume. Some of the books have
wonderful cases with Khmer silk coverings or elaborated carved wooden
boxes to store them in. The Mondap also houses a large foot print
of Buddha and a large golden statue of a standing Buddha in a glass case
which is identical to the 90 kg standing Buddha inside the Silver Pagoda.
Visitors having a stroll through the Silver Pagoda compound Another structure near the Mondap that is covered by trees and shrubs making it look like a small island in a sea of concrete is a shrine housing a statue of a Burmese Buddha. I found it relaxing walking up the winding stair way and all the dense greenery around me. It was like I was seeking inner peace as one would walk up the stairs and find a shrine housing a wonderful carving of Buddha that I have ever seen. There are also several stupas in the compound containing ashes of previous rulers like King Norodom, King Ang Duong and also King Norodom Sihanouk's daughter. In front of the Silver Pagoda is a shrine containing a bronze statue of King Norodom riding on a house. The statue original was a gift from France to Cambodia, and well as I was told the head of Napoleon was then replaced with the head of King Norodom. To the north side of the Silver Pagoda is another structure housing another library containing religious books. There is nothing much in there since most of the contents were destroyed under the Khmer Rouge regime. Also there is a statue of the Preah Kor (sacred cow Nandin) which is one of many revered statues in Cambodia. The statue contains a high content of silver but however for some circumstance it's actually black.
Model of Angkor Wat Behind the Silver Pagoda is a small model of Angkor Wat which is the replica of what it actually looked like after it's construction. I found it quite impressive to see the small model like this popping up in Kompong Som at the Peak Hotel, however I was disappointed by the history plaque stating that it was constructed by Jayavarman II who was the founder of Angkor instead of Suryavarman II. But the replica behind the Silver Pagoda contained the correct information so I guess it might have caused a little bit of confusion regarding who built it since people are known to make some mistakes. Near the small model of Angkor Wat and at the corner to the west is a bell tower, it's purpose was to ring the bell when the gates are to be opened or closed.
|
|
Please Note: No Cameras are allowed inside the Silver Pagoda. These pictures were obtained from a local Khmer magazine.
Copyright © of 2001 by Kean Chhay Chang
