Beautiful!! 美極了!!
The Terrace of the Elephants 鬥象台
Within walking distance to the Bayon and the foundation of the Royal Palace, two famous Terraces, known as the Terrace of the Elephants and the Terrace of the Leper King, are located on the west side of the road that leads to the North Gate. When standing on the Terrace of the Elephants and overlooking the open field, one needs no interpretation concerning the usage of the Terrace. It is a 300m long terrace and the open field is unbelievably huge. What could be better to use the terrace to view a military procession, celebrating a victory? Or a festive procession, celebrating the birthday of Buddha. The reliefs on the walls of the Terrace are magnificent. Evidence suggests that wooden pavilions were once built on top of the terrace used by King Jayavarman VII and the Royal Family for viewing parades, hosting ceremonies.
鬥象台的中文名字源自以前在此舉行鬥象, 以選出優秀之大象供皇室差遣, 故名之。英文稱為象台, 因為在象台中部的台階附近, 牆上刻有三頭象用象鼻伸往地上(池上)撈取蓮花。三象鼻雕成三條柱的形式, 十分漂亮, 故名之。 我個人十分喜歡這裡,可能是當時沒其他遊人,所以特別寧靜. 象台並不特別高, 但站在其上, 遥望對面的十二生肖塔, 中間隔着巨大的廣塲, 不期然給人君臨天下的感覺。 只要把眼睛閉上, 你就可以看到盛大的閱兵儀式, 或者是慶祝佛教慶典的巡遊, 又或者是鬥象的活動。七世國王與皇室及大臣們坐在鬥象台上的木造宮殿內, 與天下同樂。鬥象台上及其後的木建皇官早已蕩然無存, 只留下石基上的遺跡讓人憑吊。
I was standing on the Terrace of the Elephants, probably the same spot where King Jayavarman VII was viewing his victorious returning army. 7 of the 12 prasats at Suor Prat stand on the other side of the open field. 鬥象台的氣勢非同小可。
Looking south, the magnificent structures of the terrace. The walls are guarded by numerous garudas. The central stairway are decorated by lions and naga (serpent) balustrades. 在中央台階向南望, 外牆四周雕滿金翅大鵬,台上飾以石獅及大蛇, 令人不難想像七、八百年前的盛况。
One of the beautifully carved, life size garudas. 此神烏乃毗濕奴神之坐騎。 在中國佛教中稱之為金翅大鵬。
The south stairway is framed with three-headed elephants gathering lotus flowers with their trunks. 鬥象台的中央階梯處, 有多組如圖示之刻像。三頭象向池上吸取蓮花, 生動有致。
Bas-reliefs on the wall of Elephant Terrace. 鬥象台外牆的浮雕, 其造形,甚至色澤,皆令人喜愛。
Bas-reliefs on the wall of the north side of the Terrace. 鬥象台向北望的外牆雕刻, 示軍事行進。
The north side of the Terrace of Elephants. 鬥象台南北皆有數個向前突出的平台, 外牆皆有浮雕, 上飾以石獅及神蛇, 美不勝收。
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Terrace of the Leper King 瘋王台
The Terrace of the Leper King is on the north side of the Terrace of the Elephants. There are two things that can help to identify the Terrace of the Leper King: 1)The terrace where the Leper King statue is located. 2)Below it, there is a corridor-like structure with dramatic bas-reliefs. It is said that the statue of the Leper King depicts the Hindu god Yama. He is so-named because moss and discoloration found on the original statue was reminiscent of a person with leprosy. It is also said that King Jayavarman VII was a leper.
It is unique to this Terrace that it consists of two sets of walls, inner and outer walls. During clearing, the French School of Far Eastern Studies (EFEO) found a collapsed second wall with bas-reliefs similar to those of the outer wall. It is believed that the outer wall was a later addition. The outer wall was built right in front of the collapsed inner wall without clearing of the rubble. Now a false corridor has been created to allow visitors to admire the bas-reliefs of the original wall.
我至今對瘋王台的確實範圍仍不大了了。 有两點肯定的是: 1)瘋王台上供有瘋王像; 2)瘋王台下有稱為古代法院的假迥廊。
到底為何稱為瘋王台, 眾說紛紜。 有說原像出士時, 身上長有青苔, 加上石色斑駁, 極像麻瘋患者云云。 有謂此乃Jayavarman七世夲人, 傳說國王夲身就是痲瘋患者云云。 有謂此像乃印度教之Yama神, 待考。專家謂, 從藝術造型上看, 此像實有其特點: 1)全身赤稞, 毫無衣紋, 在高棉雕像中頗為罕見; 2)四肢比例不對, 身長手脚短; 3)臉部表情異常。 專家說, 這就是其美處。
台下假迴廊並非原構。旅行社提供之資料說這是古代法院. 據Dawn Rooney指出: 法國遠東學院(EFEO)發掘此台時發現外牆內有乾坤. 專家謂此實為原來舊牆, 可能倒塌崩壞, 在距一公尺處建新牆, 填平。 EFEO 清理現場, 重建舊牆, 成假迥廊式, 讓訪客重睹舊牆風采。
The outer wall of the Terrace of the Leper King. 瘋王台的外牆, 風化作用較明顯。
The Leper King. The original statue is in display in the National Museum. 瘋王像, 原像展於金邊博物館。
This lovely angel was sitting across the Leper King. 不知那裡來的小孩, 坐在瘋王像對面, 天真可愛。
These appear to me are the Hindu Goddess. I wish somebody could interpret the stories.內牆的浮雕, 保存甚佳, 可能是長期埋在土裡有関,風化較不嚴重。
There are six tiers of reliefs on the inner wall. 內牆浮雕共有六格,可惜不觧內容.
More on the inner wall. 浮雕極為精美,顯然曾遭破壞.
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A few more pictures – Phnom Bakheng 巴肯山
We left Angkor Thom for Bakheng, one last look on this handsome south gate. 紅日西斜, 離吳哥城往巴肯山看日落, 回頭再看南門, 十分漂亮.
Phnom Bakheng- Folks come here for sunset, I wish I had spent my time sitting on the Terrace of Elephants or the Bayon to see the bas-relief in the changing light of dusk. 有選擇的話, 我會在巴戎廟或鬥象台看日落.
Beautiful patterns on the wall of the Central Sanctuary. 巴肯山沒啥看頭. 中央塔門旁的浮雕卻是蛮漂亮的.
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