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The Customs Of Cambodia
Only one person has given us a first-hand account of the civilization of Angkor. This is the Chinese envoy, Zhou Daguan, who visited Angkor in 1296-97 and wrote A Record of Cambodia: The Land and Its People after his return to China. To this day Zhou's description of the royal palace, sacred buildings, women, traders, slaves, hill people, animals, landscapes, and everyday life remains a unique portrait of thirteenth-century Angkor at a time when its splendors were still intact.
Very little is known about Zhou Daguan. He was born on or near the southeastern coast of China, and was probably a young man when he traveled to Cambodia by boat. After returning home he faded into obscurity, though he seems to have lived on for several decades. Much of the text of Zhou's book has been lost over the centuries, but what remains gives us a lively sense of Zhou the man as well as of Angkor.
In this edition, Peter Harris translates Zhou Daguan's work directly from Chinese to English to be published for the first time. Earlier English versions depended on a French translation done over a century ago, and lost much of the feeling of the original as a result. This entirely new rendering, which draws on a range of available versions of the Zhou text, brings Zhou's many observations vividly and accurately back to life. An introduction and extensive notes help explain the text and put it in the context of the times.
First published January 1, 1992
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September 27, 2010
Occidentalism made in China
Chinese sailors do well by the fact that in this country you can go without clothes, food is easy to come by, women are easy to get, housing is easy to deal with, it is easy to make do with a few utensils, and it is easy to do trade. They often run away here.
Roughly 8,500 Chinese characters or 3`9 pages of English text remain of Zhou Daguan's (周達觀) report on the Khmer kingdom during the Yuan dynasty. Likely Zhou visited the Khmer kingdom as a member of a team that travelled to Cambodia in 1295, probably to deliver an edict from the new emperor Chengzong (元成宗). Zhou's report is the only contemporary source about life in the Khmer capital (what is now called Angkor Thom, but then called Yasodharapura) that we have. Zhou must have spent about a year in and around the capital of a country that was already in a phase of slow decay.
Originally, the report must have been about three times as long as the version that remains today. It also seems to be in disarray: its 40 sections are of differing length and are not really logically connected. Although you cannot compare it to a modern day CIA country report, the tone of the document is mostly factual with short sentences, rather than evocative. As we may expect it contains an overview of export and import products as well as animals and plants. The military information is very limited, it notes however that the Khmer king's army seems to have little or no strategy or preparation for war. The king is the paramount leader and presides over a system of servitude where he oversees the construction of temples, monuments and lakes, as well as the disbursement of land and resources. The legal system must have been quite libertarian. Many conflicts were left to the two parties involved, and no criminal inquiry took place when a dead body was found. Corporal punishments did not occur, but in certain cases noses or toes were amputated.
But Zhou does not just describe affaires d'état. He also has a keen eye for the life of Khmer citizenry. Khmer citizens live in a stratified society where many families have about 100 slaves, who live below the house. Houses have no tables, chairs, jars, or buckets. Zhou also states that the Khmer used no saws, but chiselled planks with axes. The people are very clean, and wash themselves very often. Unlike the Chinese however, they do not use loo paper.
As the excellent introduction helps explain, Zhou as a product of Chinese culture must have found Khmer culture inferior to that of the Middle Kingdom. He describes these “southern barbarians” as “coarse, ugly, and black”. And not unlike the Victorians, he shows a keen interest in Khmer sexual culture. Women not only go bare breasted, they are also “lascivious”, and enjoy a level of sexual freedom that he seems to find at least interesting. He tells how Chinese men like to go and view Khmer women bathing in rivers, and how Khmer women seem to have their virginity taken by Buddhist monks or important Hindus (pandits?). Whether in such a case these males just use their hand he cannot clarify.
What struck me is how much Zhou’s report illustrates the continuity in the culture of Nanyang, as the Chinese call Southeast Asia. Many of the practices Zhou describes can still be found around Southeast Asia today or could be found there until relatively recently. Bare breasted women could still be seen in Bali until a few decades ago. Women use medicine to make their private parts smaller after child birth, which is a practice still found in Javanese jamu. Elite women are confident and mobile (they ride chariots and elephants), and women do all the trading in markets, as is still quite the practice in Southeast Asia today. People bow to the ground when the king passes. Zhou also describes how king Indravarman III surrounded himself with Theravada Buddhist monks, hindu pandits,and Shivaite priests, as the Thai king still does. The king did not only wear a crown suggestive of tantric power (vajradhara), he also spent the night with a nine-headed snake spirit who is lord of the earth and the country. Each night the spirit turned into a woman and slept with the king. This is not unlike Nyai Loro Kidul, the shakti of the sultans of Mataram in modern day Java.
Unfortunately, Zhou also inspired the Khmer Rouge. The Khmer Rouge tried to enforce four harvests a year upon Cambodia’s peasantry, because Zhou described this practice without stating if this was the case for the same plots of land. At least here there seems to be a similarity to (Maoist) China. On the brighter side, now in 2010 more Chinese than ever visit the ruins of Yasodharapura and the surrounding temples. Every day dozens of tour groups march through Tah Prohm, where tour group leaders scream in their megaphones that this is were Angelina Jolie stood in the first Tomb Raider movie. The lure of the Khmer empire is alive and well in China.
In older books like Coèdes' Indianised States of Southeast Asia, the Wade-Giles spelling Chou Ta-kuan is used for Zhou's name.
Chinese sailors do well by the fact that in this country you can go without clothes, food is easy to come by, women are easy to get, housing is easy to deal with, it is easy to make do with a few utensils, and it is easy to do trade. They often run away here.
Roughly 8,500 Chinese characters or 3`9 pages of English text remain of Zhou Daguan's (周達觀) report on the Khmer kingdom during the Yuan dynasty. Likely Zhou visited the Khmer kingdom as a member of a team that travelled to Cambodia in 1295, probably to deliver an edict from the new emperor Chengzong (元成宗). Zhou's report is the only contemporary source about life in the Khmer capital (what is now called Angkor Thom, but then called Yasodharapura) that we have. Zhou must have spent about a year in and around the capital of a country that was already in a phase of slow decay.
Originally, the report must have been about three times as long as the version that remains today. It also seems to be in disarray: its 40 sections are of differing length and are not really logically connected. Although you cannot compare it to a modern day CIA country report, the tone of the document is mostly factual with short sentences, rather than evocative. As we may expect it contains an overview of export and import products as well as animals and plants. The military information is very limited, it notes however that the Khmer king's army seems to have little or no strategy or preparation for war. The king is the paramount leader and presides over a system of servitude where he oversees the construction of temples, monuments and lakes, as well as the disbursement of land and resources. The legal system must have been quite libertarian. Many conflicts were left to the two parties involved, and no criminal inquiry took place when a dead body was found. Corporal punishments did not occur, but in certain cases noses or toes were amputated.
But Zhou does not just describe affaires d'état. He also has a keen eye for the life of Khmer citizenry. Khmer citizens live in a stratified society where many families have about 100 slaves, who live below the house. Houses have no tables, chairs, jars, or buckets. Zhou also states that the Khmer used no saws, but chiselled planks with axes. The people are very clean, and wash themselves very often. Unlike the Chinese however, they do not use loo paper.
As the excellent introduction helps explain, Zhou as a product of Chinese culture must have found Khmer culture inferior to that of the Middle Kingdom. He describes these “southern barbarians” as “coarse, ugly, and black”. And not unlike the Victorians, he shows a keen interest in Khmer sexual culture. Women not only go bare breasted, they are also “lascivious”, and enjoy a level of sexual freedom that he seems to find at least interesting. He tells how Chinese men like to go and view Khmer women bathing in rivers, and how Khmer women seem to have their virginity taken by Buddhist monks or important Hindus (pandits?). Whether in such a case these males just use their hand he cannot clarify.
What struck me is how much Zhou’s report illustrates the continuity in the culture of Nanyang, as the Chinese call Southeast Asia. Many of the practices Zhou describes can still be found around Southeast Asia today or could be found there until relatively recently. Bare breasted women could still be seen in Bali until a few decades ago. Women use medicine to make their private parts smaller after child birth, which is a practice still found in Javanese jamu. Elite women are confident and mobile (they ride chariots and elephants), and women do all the trading in markets, as is still quite the practice in Southeast Asia today. People bow to the ground when the king passes. Zhou also describes how king Indravarman III surrounded himself with Theravada Buddhist monks, hindu pandits,and Shivaite priests, as the Thai king still does. The king did not only wear a crown suggestive of tantric power (vajradhara), he also spent the night with a nine-headed snake spirit who is lord of the earth and the country. Each night the spirit turned into a woman and slept with the king. This is not unlike Nyai Loro Kidul, the shakti of the sultans of Mataram in modern day Java.
Unfortunately, Zhou also inspired the Khmer Rouge. The Khmer Rouge tried to enforce four harvests a year upon Cambodia’s peasantry, because Zhou described this practice without stating if this was the case for the same plots of land. At least here there seems to be a similarity to (Maoist) China. On the brighter side, now in 2010 more Chinese than ever visit the ruins of Yasodharapura and the surrounding temples. Every day dozens of tour groups march through Tah Prohm, where tour group leaders scream in their megaphones that this is were Angelina Jolie stood in the first Tomb Raider movie. The lure of the Khmer empire is alive and well in China.
In older books like Coèdes' Indianised States of Southeast Asia, the Wade-Giles spelling Chou Ta-kuan is used for Zhou's name.
September 18, 2021
Insightful and fascinating
January 20, 2009
Zhou Daguan was a late Yuan Dynasty Chinese official who visited Cambodia in the very late 13th century. His record is an invaluable contribution to our knowledge of early Cambodian history. Many translations of his famous text exist, but I personally have found this one of the best.
For visitors to Angkor Wat, this book is a "must". However, it's more than just a late afternoon read after touring Angkor Thom and environs. It's also an excellent translation of a valuable work with very helpful footnotes for academics and independent scholars, docents, and anyone interested in the site's history and meaning. The excellent footnotes and explanations and inclusion of Chinese characters makes it a valuable reference work for those studying Cambodian, Vietnamese (Champa) and Chinese history. Don't let its slim size and popularity with armchair and visiting tourists distract you from its value.
For visitors to Angkor Wat, this book is a "must". However, it's more than just a late afternoon read after touring Angkor Thom and environs. It's also an excellent translation of a valuable work with very helpful footnotes for academics and independent scholars, docents, and anyone interested in the site's history and meaning. The excellent footnotes and explanations and inclusion of Chinese characters makes it a valuable reference work for those studying Cambodian, Vietnamese (Champa) and Chinese history. Don't let its slim size and popularity with armchair and visiting tourists distract you from its value.
March 12, 2015
This short record by Zhong Daguan - a 13th century Chinese traveller - helps us to put the ruins of Angkor into context. A must-read for those who are heading to Cambodia.
January 28, 2014
Traveling to an archaeological site as grand as Angkor, it’s natural to wonder what the city must have been like in its heyday. Angkor’s population was estimated to be as much as 1 million people, making it one of the world’s biggest urban centers in its day. One can get a feel for how vast and impressive Angkor was by way of the restorations, its artwork, and even the lay of its rubble fields. However, today’s Angkor is in large part a testament to the power of Mother Nature to swallow once proud temples and palaces with strangler figs and to shatter stout walls with white silk cotton trees. It’s hard to fathom what it was like when it was occupied by kings and concubines, slaves and shamans.
A Record of Cambodia offers a rare glimpse into life at Angkor at the tail end of the 13th century—near the city’s peak. It was written by Zhou Daguan, a Chinese diplomat sent by Yuan China [Mongolian era] as part of a delegation. Zhou spent almost a year at Angkor during 1296-1297. His report was translated into French during the 19th century, and all the English translations in existence had been based on the French not the original Chinese (i.e. twice translated.) This 2007 edition, however, was translated directly from Classical Chinese by Peter Harris.
The thin volume weighs in at only about 150 pages, but fewer than 40 pages are Zhou Daguan’s report. The other 110 pages include front matter, graphics, appendices, and notes. The Introduction, at 30 pages, is almost as long as Zhou’s document. However, this should not be taken as criticism. There’s a lot of useful expansion upon, and explication of, the information in Zhou’s report in both the Introduction and the end-notes. While it’s written by the translator, Peter Harris, it’s probably best to think of the Introduction as an Editor’s Introduction rather than a Translator’s Introduction--the latter creating an impression of a discussion of the minutiae of ancient grammars. (There is a little of that in a separate “Notes on the Translation.”) Harris’s introduction sets the background, elaborates on certain mistakes that Zhou seems to have made, and contrasts Zhou’s report with the accounts of other famous travelers such as Marco Polo, Ibn Buttata, and Xuanzang
Zhou’s report is divided into 40 chapters; though the word “chapter” seems more fitting for some than others, as many are no more than a single short paragraph. Each chapter is themed by some element of Khmeri life during the era. They include coverage of how people dressed, the nature of slavery at Angkor, what the buildings looked like in their glory days, sexual practices, agriculture, trade, local flora and fauna, and eating practices.
While short, Zhou’s book gives us a great deal of information that we wouldn’t have had otherwise. I learned a number of intriguing facts such as that fireworks displays were a regular event, runaway slaves had their faces tattooed blue, and the only ones not all allowed in Angkor Thom were those who were missing a toe(s) (removal of digits was a punishment back in the day.) Zhou has a great curiosity with the sexuality of the Khmeris, which was a great deal more liberal than that of China. Even the practice of toplessness among both men and women of all classes drew Zhou’s attention.
As when one reads the accounts of European explorers and adventurers, there’s a certain bigotry and conceit that comes across in Zhou’s writing—though it doesn’t come across as jarringly as in the works of, say, Francis Galton. Zhou does report on matters where the Khmeris looked down on Chinese practices as uncivilized (e.g. using human waste as fertilizer or using toilet paper / not reserving their right hand for sanitary endeavors.) On some cultural differences, Zhou comes across as mocking the Khmeri ways (e.g. communal bathing practices), and he goes as far as to refer to them as “Barbarians.”
If you’ve been to (or plan on going to) Angkor, I’d highly recommend giving this thin volume a read. It won’t take much time, and it’ll allow you to see the ruins in a new light.
A Record of Cambodia offers a rare glimpse into life at Angkor at the tail end of the 13th century—near the city’s peak. It was written by Zhou Daguan, a Chinese diplomat sent by Yuan China [Mongolian era] as part of a delegation. Zhou spent almost a year at Angkor during 1296-1297. His report was translated into French during the 19th century, and all the English translations in existence had been based on the French not the original Chinese (i.e. twice translated.) This 2007 edition, however, was translated directly from Classical Chinese by Peter Harris.
The thin volume weighs in at only about 150 pages, but fewer than 40 pages are Zhou Daguan’s report. The other 110 pages include front matter, graphics, appendices, and notes. The Introduction, at 30 pages, is almost as long as Zhou’s document. However, this should not be taken as criticism. There’s a lot of useful expansion upon, and explication of, the information in Zhou’s report in both the Introduction and the end-notes. While it’s written by the translator, Peter Harris, it’s probably best to think of the Introduction as an Editor’s Introduction rather than a Translator’s Introduction--the latter creating an impression of a discussion of the minutiae of ancient grammars. (There is a little of that in a separate “Notes on the Translation.”) Harris’s introduction sets the background, elaborates on certain mistakes that Zhou seems to have made, and contrasts Zhou’s report with the accounts of other famous travelers such as Marco Polo, Ibn Buttata, and Xuanzang
Zhou’s report is divided into 40 chapters; though the word “chapter” seems more fitting for some than others, as many are no more than a single short paragraph. Each chapter is themed by some element of Khmeri life during the era. They include coverage of how people dressed, the nature of slavery at Angkor, what the buildings looked like in their glory days, sexual practices, agriculture, trade, local flora and fauna, and eating practices.
While short, Zhou’s book gives us a great deal of information that we wouldn’t have had otherwise. I learned a number of intriguing facts such as that fireworks displays were a regular event, runaway slaves had their faces tattooed blue, and the only ones not all allowed in Angkor Thom were those who were missing a toe(s) (removal of digits was a punishment back in the day.) Zhou has a great curiosity with the sexuality of the Khmeris, which was a great deal more liberal than that of China. Even the practice of toplessness among both men and women of all classes drew Zhou’s attention.
As when one reads the accounts of European explorers and adventurers, there’s a certain bigotry and conceit that comes across in Zhou’s writing—though it doesn’t come across as jarringly as in the works of, say, Francis Galton. Zhou does report on matters where the Khmeris looked down on Chinese practices as uncivilized (e.g. using human waste as fertilizer or using toilet paper / not reserving their right hand for sanitary endeavors.) On some cultural differences, Zhou comes across as mocking the Khmeri ways (e.g. communal bathing practices), and he goes as far as to refer to them as “Barbarians.”
If you’ve been to (or plan on going to) Angkor, I’d highly recommend giving this thin volume a read. It won’t take much time, and it’ll allow you to see the ruins in a new light.
Read
February 24, 2026Only source from 1200s, outsider perspective. Clear bias but helpful nonetheless
June 20, 2025
Nearly 700 years old, this first-hand account is an interesting read, even for those not entirely enthusiastic about the topic. Peter Harris's analyses, translations, and overall research, combined with Zhou's unorthodox method of record keeping, create a read that leaves you jumping between the chapters and their notes
As great a job Harris did, I nonetheless felt lost when connecting records to their real-life locations in Angkor. Could this be blamed on me, of course! But I still feel that the map provided could have been more detailed or had more pages provided.
Overall, Harris's work is an informative and fun read, especially commendable considering the linguistic and regional changes made since the original record's publication and its possible tampering by other Chinese officials.
As great a job Harris did, I nonetheless felt lost when connecting records to their real-life locations in Angkor. Could this be blamed on me, of course! But I still feel that the map provided could have been more detailed or had more pages provided.
Overall, Harris's work is an informative and fun read, especially commendable considering the linguistic and regional changes made since the original record's publication and its possible tampering by other Chinese officials.
June 23, 2018
A rather unique book based on the records of a Chinese merchant from his trip to Angkor Empire in the 13th century. At times it was difficult to follow the descriptions and visualize the details. But overall it was an absolutely fantastic and fascinating experience. A must-read for any history lover before a visit to Cambodia/Angkor.
April 24, 2022
A fascinating insight into what life would have been like for people in the city of Yasodharapura in the 13th century. Peter Harris does an incredible job of translating the typically stilted literary Chinese of the time into an enjoyable read.
May 3, 2020
Veramente apprezzabile e affascinante. L’apparato delle note aiuta assai. Forse l’unica pecca è la romanizzazione del cinese col sistema Wade, si potrebbe aggiornare il testo con il pinyin.
May 13, 2021
游记史料而已 旅游人士读读便罢
July 9, 2021
An excellent new English translation of Zhou Daguan will be very helpful for traveling to Angkor.
March 31, 2019
Piccolo libricino dei resoconti dell'ambasciatore della potente Cina nel regno Khmer al massimo dello splendore nel XV secolo. Il raffinato autore indaga con sguardo curioso agli usi e costumi della corte e delle genti cambogiane.
January 18, 2008
An interesting and odd book. Don't skip Peter Harris's introduction and notes.
Zhou's account is interesting on a number of levels: it is an eyewitness (diplomatic) account of life in the ancient Khmer capital in the 13th c.; it is a classic example of imperialist condescension toward peoples considered lesser; yet it is relied upon to this day by tour guides in Cambodia, as Zhou's account is apparently the basis of Cambodian histories!
What I find most fascinating is his biases. Zhou is preocuppied with different bodily practices. His repeated comments about women's bodies are classic examples of othering. Zhou is also, oddly I think, preoccupied by the activities of the Chinese in Cambodia. Was he homesick? Surely as a diplomat, his role was to observe the host country and govt., rather than to report back on Chinese migrant workers.
And though Harris makes his case that Zhou is a more worthy eyewitness than his contemporary Marco Polo, I still have my doubts that he was there. It is difficult for me to believe, to take but one example, that Zhou would have described the Bayon in such bland terms. The Bayon, with its 56 towers and 224 faces of Buddha (or J VII), surrounded by 4 dozen+ nagas, erect with capes unfurled, would have made a strong if not terrifying impression. Leaving aside the detailed imagery of the Khmer battles against the Chams, the mass of the building itself no doubt intended to impress and overwhelm. But Zhou is interested in the king's quarters at Baphoun and Phimeanakas instead. Hmmm.
Zhou's bias in favor of the king's sex life might be substantiated by Zhou's obvious investment in the pomp and splendour of the court, but then it doesn't explain how he could omit discussion of the massive waterworks projects all around him, which were surely greater evidence of the king's power than the bronze and gold on the tower surfaces.
Finally, I can't understand his complete lack of acknowledgement of the shift from Hinduism to Buddhism, also overwhelmingly evident in the buildings around him.
Still, it is an interesting account, though I remain curious about many oddities: can anyone explain the gall bladder chapter?
Zhou's account is interesting on a number of levels: it is an eyewitness (diplomatic) account of life in the ancient Khmer capital in the 13th c.; it is a classic example of imperialist condescension toward peoples considered lesser; yet it is relied upon to this day by tour guides in Cambodia, as Zhou's account is apparently the basis of Cambodian histories!
What I find most fascinating is his biases. Zhou is preocuppied with different bodily practices. His repeated comments about women's bodies are classic examples of othering. Zhou is also, oddly I think, preoccupied by the activities of the Chinese in Cambodia. Was he homesick? Surely as a diplomat, his role was to observe the host country and govt., rather than to report back on Chinese migrant workers.
And though Harris makes his case that Zhou is a more worthy eyewitness than his contemporary Marco Polo, I still have my doubts that he was there. It is difficult for me to believe, to take but one example, that Zhou would have described the Bayon in such bland terms. The Bayon, with its 56 towers and 224 faces of Buddha (or J VII), surrounded by 4 dozen+ nagas, erect with capes unfurled, would have made a strong if not terrifying impression. Leaving aside the detailed imagery of the Khmer battles against the Chams, the mass of the building itself no doubt intended to impress and overwhelm. But Zhou is interested in the king's quarters at Baphoun and Phimeanakas instead. Hmmm.
Zhou's bias in favor of the king's sex life might be substantiated by Zhou's obvious investment in the pomp and splendour of the court, but then it doesn't explain how he could omit discussion of the massive waterworks projects all around him, which were surely greater evidence of the king's power than the bronze and gold on the tower surfaces.
Finally, I can't understand his complete lack of acknowledgement of the shift from Hinduism to Buddhism, also overwhelmingly evident in the buildings around him.
Still, it is an interesting account, though I remain curious about many oddities: can anyone explain the gall bladder chapter?
October 12, 2013
Who said Malinowski invented ethnographic fieldwork? Zhou Daguan did just that 7 centuries before him! And wrote a record of his stay in Cambodia for the Chinese emperor at the time. It was not an ethnography per se, in that back then it was called 'ethnography'. But it was a record of the place, the environment, the landscape, the people, and language of the Angkor Empire. In fact, besides the inscriptions on the temple walls, there was not much record of the life of that time that survives until today. This book is an English translation of Zhou's record that contains barely enough materials to make it a book. Well, at least that's what was left to be translated. Nevertheless, it gives you a tiny glimpse of the land and the people of Angkor at the top of its heights, or toward the end of that era.
August 18, 2014
This is the only substantial record of the Angkorian civilization that we have. It was written in the 13th century by a Chinese traveller, Zhou Daguan and has been translated directly into English for the first time. This book is an invaluable accessory for any trip to Angkor Wat, the descriptions provided give a life to the dead temples and ruins that they themselves can no longer project.
Unfortunately even this record is fragmentary and much of this book is filled with extremely helpful translator's notes and footnotes. Also included are maps and photographs of some of the landmarks described in some of the books. I would heartily recommend this book to anyone interested in Angkor Wat and would consider it essential for anyone actually going there.
Unfortunately even this record is fragmentary and much of this book is filled with extremely helpful translator's notes and footnotes. Also included are maps and photographs of some of the landmarks described in some of the books. I would heartily recommend this book to anyone interested in Angkor Wat and would consider it essential for anyone actually going there.
July 25, 2011
Even though the very comprehensive notes, introductions, prefaces etc outnumber the actual translated text, which is very brief, this is still an interesting account of the way things were at the height of the Angkor civilisation by an eyewitness. One could presumably gain the same observations from the bas relief surrounding Ankor Wat and Bayon, in pictorial form.
August 15, 2015
As the only known eyewitness account of the Angkorian period it is an important book and accessible for those interested in the history of Cambodia. Peter Harris' copious notes help to fill in as much detail and plausible interpretation as possible. Worth keeping as a reference source.
Want to Read
January 4, 2016You stupid assholes, so now you have my Facebook Account email address and so on and I have nothing but spam and hundreds of ways to click here and there and everywhere when ALL I WANNA DO IS READING THIS FUCKING 800 YEARS OLD RECORD OF CAMBODIA. Bastards!
February 18, 2013
This is a short but interesting account of life at Angkor in the distant pass. Good to read if you're going to visit Angkor.
March 11, 2015
Very carefully researched, with much more information than the Chinese original or other translations. But, I thought there are some beautiful pictures in the book, but none!
December 18, 2016
A brilliant translation of the Chinese.
April 9, 2017
If you're planning on visiting Siem Reap and the temples of Angkor, it's important to read up on the Khmer history, culture, religion, so when your Khmer guide takes you to the temples, you will have a greater appreciation of just how incredible these 1000 year old temples truly are.
Displaying 1 - 23 of 23 reviews