Sunday, November 10, 2013

The stone guards of Angkor



Nāga bridges are causeways or true bridges lined by stone balustrades shaped as nāgas.
In some Angkorian nāga-bridges, as for example those located at the entrances to 12th century city of Angkor Thom, the nāga-shaped balustrades are supported not by simple posts but by stone statues of gigantic warriors. These giants are the devas and asuras who used the nāga king Vasuki in order to the churn the Ocean of Milk in quest of the amrita or elixir of immortality. The story of the Churning of the Ocean of Milk or samudra manthan has its source in Indian mythology.







http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Khmer_architecture

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