The structure of the Angkor Inscriptions Database was designed around three primary entities:
sites and temples, inscriptions associated with each site, and the material items (objects) recorded in the inscriptions. Each site in the database is associated with one or more inscriptions, and each inscription contains data pertaining to zero, one or more objects as well as socio-economic data (such as status of founders and donors, role of the ruler, declarations about immunities and authority for maintenance of a foundation). Each database object has a set of attributes which describe its characteristics (e.g. measurements and materials).
Geographic coordinates are entered against sites and temples, temporal data is recorded at the inscription level, and the attributes of objects in the database include discernible material and socio-economic properties. The hierarchy is seen in the database structure, Appendix 8, showing the links between these levels and the fields comprising them. The structure of the database was designed to minimise data redundancy, with data recorded in only one place.
Description of all database fields and their defining parameters are detailed in Appendix 6.
Data are added to the database from lists of predefined terms (of objects, materials, context, titles, etc.) that are offered as options in a drop-down list. If a term is not in the list, the system informs the user and asks if they wish to add it as a new entry. The drop-down lists help
100One example of this is the inscription K. 290/ 1015 (Pottier, 2003: 200).
maintain consistent spelling and naming conventions. In contexts where text interpretation is difficult (role of the ruler, taxes/ immunities, authority over foundation) every entry is unique.
Where additional explanation might be required, remarks may be entered in the open Comments fields at the three levels of Site, Inscription and Object. For example, for exchanges (purchased goods), the Khmer term used for the type of transaction and the list of barter goods have been added to the Comments field. New fields can be incorporated to respond to unpredicted needs. For example, during this study, a field was added to record information about the diverse roles of the rulers, such as granting immunities to foundations.
5.7 5.7 5.7
5.7 Conclusion Conclusion Conclusion Conclusion
The inscriptions are our only source of primary local historical evidence covering the Pre-Angkorian and Pre-Angkorian periods. The specificity of their genre and overall state of preservation present various obstacles to their interpretation, even through close reading. A complementary method, entailing analysis of all available data in aggregate using a database as a tool, helps to resolve issues of interpretation, which are relatively less significant when aggregated with many other readings. The data are viewed in a broad temporal and topographic perspective, and correlated with other data. The epigraphic data are treated in much the same way as material archaeological data, requiring an awareness of the interpretation issues of sampling and meaning. This broad analysis is not a replacement for detailed and close reading of specific parts of the inscriptions, but rather an additional analytic procedure, intended to cast them in a different light. One advantage of using a database for the storage and management of the sometimes uncertain inscription data is that its fields, categories and the data itself may be updated at any time. In due course, new translations of texts can be incorporated, enabling the assessment of any significant changes in the overall patterns of the data.
The study looks at frequencies and distributions of key indicators and highlights unique occurrences or anomalies. It concentrates on general comparisons from the totality of the available data more than generalisations from selected instances. Relationships can be examined between objects (e.g. number of women compared with number of men), between times (e.g. whether an occurrence increases or decreases) and between locations (e.g. how they are distributed) using the database and other tools, such as spreadsheets and GIS. The identified trends and anomalies can help to determine priorities for additional studies.
In the following chapters, inscription data are used to examine three areas of Angkor’s political economy, namely political controls (Chapter 6), money, markets and trade (Chapter 7) and the role of the religious foundations in the state’s integration (Chapter 8). The findings, together with data identified in Chapters 2-4 are used to examine Angkor’s imperial strategies. While
concurring with or refuting some key positions, they also provide new interpretations of how Angkor adapted to changing circumstances over the centuries.
6666 Political Political Political processes: mea Political processes: mea processes: measures of central influence processes: mea sures of central influence sures of central influence sures of central influence
933 śaka, the ninth day of the crescent moon of Bhadrapada, Sunday. Here is (our) oath:
We all who belong to the division of the tamrvāc of the first (second, second, third, fourth) category, swear, cutting our hands and offering our lives and our devotion gratefully and unerringly, to His Majesty Śrī Sūryavarman, who has enjoyed the legitimate monarchy since 924 śaka, in the presence of the sacred Fire, of the holy Jewel of the Brahmans and the ācāryas. We will not revere any other sovereign; we will not be hostile to him, we will not comply with his enemies; we will not commit any act which might do him harm. All these acts which are the fruit of our grateful devotion towards His Majesty Śri Sūryavarman, we will endeavour to accomplish. In case of war we will strive to fight with all our hearts, not to bind ourselves to life; by devotion (to the king) we will not run away from combat. If, in times of no war, we die of disease, may we obtain the reward of people devoted to their master. If our existence remains in the service of the king, when the time to die (in service) arrives, we will do it in devotion………
K. 292 (1011 CE) Oath of allegiance
6.1 6.1 6.1
6.1 Introduction Introduction Introduction Introduction
The above oath of allegiance made to Sūryavarman I by 4,000 members of thetaṃrvāc corps from 200 different sruk was formulated to affirm that their loyalty was wholly and willingly to their revered king. The inscription conveys a notion of a king with absolute power. In this chapter, inscription data are used to explore the nature and extent of royal control in Angkor’s administration of its territories. As outlined in Chapter 2, while Angkor is sometimes portrayed as centralised, with rulers and elites controlling people and the flow of resources, it has also been seen, in common with other Southeast Asian states, as being decentralised. The ubiquitous royal edicts seen in both royal and non-royal inscriptions101 — recording gifts, temple construction and management, appointments, legal judgments, honours and privileges
— offer insights, if not into the state’s ability to assert control, at least into its influence.
Textual data often present us with conundrums or contradictions about the role of central authorities in regional administration. It might be difficult, for example, to assess from texts whether stated actions, such as court decisions, were the outcome of decisions by central or regional authority, and whether the statements made by rulers and elites were factual, statements of power or claims to disputed ownership. Nevertheless, a case is made that
101In a royal inscription a king is the author of the text. This might be an administrative edict, a record of a new foundation or a donation to foundation. In most non-royal inscriptions, the authors are not rulers. They may be founding or donating to religious establishments or asserting rights over property. A few non-royal inscriptions are written by members of religious orders, often ascetics.
temporal and spatial patterns of certain markers in the inscription data are indicators which can inform us about central influence or perhaps even control. The data are analysed separately for royal and non-royal inscriptions, since these were written for different purposes and record different perceptions of events around the time of writing.
The study uses GIS to examine spatial and temporal distributions of inscription sites, individually and in clusters, to seek possible locations of economically and politically important regional centres, and to link these to known communications routes. These routes were most likely in existence since at least the Pre-Angkorian period, and connected also to trade routes beyond Khmer territory. Finally, the indicators of central influence are examined in relation to temple clusters, to argue that an important strategy for sustaining the empire was to give a degree of autonomy to regional centres.
6.2 6.2
6.2 6.2 EEEExtent of xtent of xtent of xtent of Angkor’s influence and control Angkor’s influence and control Angkor’s influence and control Angkor’s influence and control
By plotting the positions of inscriptions on a series of maps corresponding to six principal periods of Khmer history, Parmentier (1916: 69-70) was able to indicate the extent of the Khmer empire.102 Parmentier noted the progressive shift of the centre of gravity of the temple sites to the north from the Pre-Angkorian period, through what he regarded as incorporation of new areas into the empire. However, he stressed that these maps were only indicative of the actual distribution, since it was possible that a number of inscriptions remained to be discovered and that some had been moved from their place of origin. Figure 6, using the more comprehensive data from the Angkor Inscriptions Database, shows the location of all published inscription sites that have a provenance. Figure 7 depicts these inscription sites by century, conforming in general to what Parmentier observed. It might be noted that, despite the changes in distribution, the coverage by Khmer inscriptions remained largely unchanged over the entire period.
The presence of inscriptions acknowledging Khmer rulers need not imply Khmer control.
Likewise, settlement markers such as brick or stone temples associated with rulers and powerful elites need not point to central control, even though in some way they represent the ideologies of the centre (Martin Polkinghorne 2007, pers. comm.). Indeed, it is often difficult to distinguish between influence, which might entail choices (Claessen and van de Velde 1987:
7-8), and control, which tends to be imposed. Neither is absolute and they may overlap. For example, it may not be at all clear to what extent payment of taxes or tribute by local polities to the centre should be viewed as voluntary, mandatory or both, since both offer benefits as well
102 Parmentier’s maps (recording geographic coordinates) were based on earlier archaeological site maps produced by de Lajonquière (1901) and others. The six periods were prior to Jayavarman II (802 CE); between Jayavarman II and Rājendravarman (944), which includes the Koh Ker period; Rājendravarman (944-968); Jayavarman V (968-1000);
Sūryavarman I (1002-1050); and the XIth and XIIth centuries, including the reign of Jayavarman VII.
as disadvantages. Indirect imperial involvement may leave imperial styles, symbols of imperial authority, or infrastructure, such as roads, bridges, storehouses or way-stations (Sinopoli 1994: 171).
Figure 6 Distribution of all Pre-Angkorian and Angkorian period inscription sites
As markers of influence or control, the Khmer inscriptions vary both spatially and temporally.
For example, a few inscriptions in Old Khmer found up to 900 km from Angkor originated in areas probably not under Khmer ‘rule’, but where there were Khmer speaking populations.
The content of the inscriptions from Thai sites, K. 413/ 1361, K. 988/ 1380 and K. 995/ 1429, might point to Khmer influence, but not to control by the Khmer state. These inscriptions are nevertheless included in the analysis where appropriate, for assessing issues such as trade and communication. However, the Pre-Angkorian period text in Old Khmer found on the Isthmus of Kra (K. 407/ 7th c.) most likely does not pertain to a Khmer polity (Michael Vickery 2007, pers. comm.), but is of interest for its mention of trade goods. The picture is further complicated by the knowledge that populations and their archaeological remains are distributed unevenly over the landscape, according to resources such as water, soils, minerals and communication links: even if a location is known to have strong links with the centre, it does not follow that all areas between it and the centre will be subject to the same influences or controls.
Figure 7 Distribution of inscriptions by century. Pink dots indicate where dates are estimated to fall within 2 centuries (e.g. for 12th c. figure, 11th–12th or 12th–13th c.). Known Khmer roads from Hendrickson (2007).