Hariharalaya

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Hariharalaya
Native Nameហរិហរាល័យ
Alternative nameModern-day Rolous
BA#C1709002
SizeLarge
ConditionRuin
TypeAncient City
Location
Part ofAngkor
CommuneBakong
DistrictPrasat Bakong
ProvinceSiem Reap
CountryCambodia
Coordinates13.33598, 103.97786
History
Founded9th Century
BuilderJayavarman ii, Jayavarman III, Indravarman I
Art StylePreah Ko, Bakheng
MaterialLaterite, Brick
ReligionHinduism
DeityHarihara
UNESCO Inscription1992



9999 Hariharalaya 2.jpg
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Site Size & Condition: Ancient City Hariharalaya (ហរិហរាល័យ - Pronounced: Harri-hara-laya).

The ancient city of Hariharalaya - named after the Hindu deity Harihara who combined the attributes of both Vishnu and Shiva - lies a few kilometres east of the present-day site of Angkor and corresponds to an eclectic group of temples known today as Rolous.

The sprawling city is considered to have been founded by Jayavarman II in the late 8th to early 9th centuries who settled the site on 2 occasions - prior to and after his founding of Mahendraparvata on Phnom Kulen - although certain archaeologists would claim he was merely occupying and upgrading an existing settlement. Perhaps failure to fully pacify all the local chiefdoms and a difficult to defend location prompted a move to the defensible mountain position but clearly by the start of the 9th-century the king felt confident enough to return to the lowland site at Rolous.

Indeed no large-scale defensive walls and moats on the scale of Yasodharapura or Angkor Thom have been identified as belonging to Hariharalaya. The city continued to function as the nascent imperial capital under the subsequent kings Jayavarman II and Indravarman I, throughout the 9th-century, with Yasovarman completing some of the monuments before founding Yasodhapura a short distance to the west.

Numerous temple sites lie within this area with the best-known being Prasat Bakong, Prasat Preah Ko (Prasat Bakong) and Prasat Lolei situated in the Indratataka slightly to the north of the main area. One of the largest, albeit visually unimpressive today, is Prasat Prei Monti whose wide, moated enclosure may well have housed the royal palace complex. This is also considered to be one of the oldest Rolous sites along with Prasat Trapeang Phong.


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