Abstract
Iron slags and ores were collected from 22 sites (A to V) in Preah Khan of Kompong Svay, the area surrounding Phnom Daek, and the Angkor monuments. Iron ores were taken from two outcrops in Phnom Daek. The chemical compositions of fayalite and wüstite in the iron slags and magnetite in the iron ores were determined using a scanning electron microscope equipped with an energy dispersive spectrometer. Cluster analysis and principal component analysis using averaged chemical compositional data for fayalite allowed for the investigated slag dumps to be classified into two main groups: Groups 1 and 2. The slag dumps in the area surrounding Phnom Daek and those in the Angkor monuments were classified as Group 1, and those in Preah Khan of Kompong Svay were classified as Group 2, except for sites C and U, which were classified as Group 1. Radiocarbon dating was carried out on 10 charcoal fragments from slag dumps outside the Angkor area. The dating results indicate that iron making in Preah Khan of Kompong Svay was conducted in and after the 13th century except for sites C and U, where iron ores may have been supplied from Phnom Daek before the 13th century.
Highlights
The Khmer monuments consist of Hindu and Buddhist temples built by the Khmer people between the 9th and 15th centuries
The slag dumps could be classified into two main groups by a cluster analysis and a principal component analysis using the averaged chemical compositional data for fayalite in the iron slags
On the basis of a cluster analysis and a principal component analysis using the averaged chemical compositional data for fayalite, the slag dumps were largely classified into two groups: the slag dumps in Preah Khan of Kompong Svay, except for sites
Summary
The Khmer monuments consist of Hindu and Buddhist temples built by the Khmer people between the 9th and 15th centuries. The monuments are distributed in Cambodia, Thailand, Laos, and Vietnam. The most famous and important Khmer monuments include the Angkor monuments, which are distributed mainly around Siem Reap City (Figure 1). Because the temples are built mostly of stone, iron tools, such as chisels, were required to quarry stone blocks. A scene in the bas-relief of the Inner Gallery of Bayon shows individuals quarrying stone blocks using long chisel-like sticks (Figure 2a). Quarries in the Angkor period at the foothill of Mt. Kulen, which are located
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