Visitors to Cambodia soon add a new word to their vocabulary – Apsara. Often appropriated as a name for resorts, travel companies, and restaurants, Apsaras are mythical female celestial dancers that graced the walls of Angkor-era temples as early as the 8th century AD.
Scholars of Khmer art and archaeology often differentiate between the sensual flying nymphs or Apsaras and enigmatic standing figures known as Devatas which are thought to be guardians of the temple. Exquisite bas-reliefs of the highly stylised figures can be seen in abundance at Angkor Wat where over 1,700 have been recorded, and at other ancient monuments at the UNSECO World Heritage Site.
Today the spirit of the Apsaras has been revived by Cambodia’s bourgeoning tourist industry and they appear in performances of beautifully choreographed Khmer dance drama.
During a recent visit to Angkor I developed a bit of an Apasara obsession and ended up photographing dozens of them, many weathered by time into beautiful and ghostly images.
