SOAS Research Online

Abstract

The reach of Angkor will always exceed the territorial and temporal delimitation which historians and politicians alike seek to give it; indeed, attempts to pin down dates and borders shed light on the uncontainability of empire which defines empire, so to speak, at its core. This chapter looks beyond Cambodia as we know it today in geographic terms, and beyond the 13th century, to explore legacies of the reign of Jayavarman VII (1181–1220). For its timing, its Buddhist orientation, and its reach and particular investment in sculptural production, this reign left indelible marks across the Southeast Asian mainland. While the focus is on Siam as a privileged if contested Angkorian heir, other mainland polities can be shown to have evolved in otherwise attesting and contesting relations with Angkor. Seen through our prism, ethno-linguistic differences between this or that Post-Angkorian mainland polity can pale in comparison to the shared Angkorian legacies evidenced, with the ancient politico-aesthetic mould at once underpinning and undermining borders even as they are increasingly made to appear natural.