Historical

In 1939, the German sociologist Norbert Elias published his groundbreaking work The Civilizing Process, which has come to be regarded as one of the most influential works of sociology today. In this insightful new study tracing the history of violence in Cambodia, the authors evaluate the extent to which Elias's theories can be applied in a non-western context.

Originally published in 1951, it is said that A Dragon Apparent inspired Graham Greene to go to Vietnam and write The Quiet American. Norman Lewis traveled in Indo-China during the precarious last years of the French colonial regime. Much of the charm and grandeur of the ancient native civilizations survived until the devastation of the Vietnam War.

This is a reproduction of a book published before 1923. This book may have occasional imperfections such as missing or blurred pages, poor pictures, errant marks, etc. that were either part of the original artifact, or were introduced by the scanning process. We believe this work is culturally important, and despite the imperfections, have elected to bring it back into print as part of our continuing commitment to the preservation of printed works worldwide. We appreciate your understanding of the imperfections in the preservation process, and hope you enjoy this valuable book.

As a one-time resident of Phnom Penh and an authority on Southeast Asia, Milton Osborne provides a colorful account of the troubled history and appealing culture of Cambodia's capital city. Osborne sheds light on Phnom Penh's early history, when first Iberian missionaries and freebooters and then French colonists held Cambodia's fate in their hands.

In 1871 at age 17 Frank Vincent Jr. dropped out of Yale University and, began "a systematic tour of the most interesting parts of the world." Arriving in Bangkok, Siam, Vincent desired to explore legends of a lost city of temples in the jungle as found in the papers of a Frenchman who had explored the region 10 years earlier, but who did not make it back alive.

The Old Khmer Grammar has been brewed from a mass of memoranda and citations accumulated over long years of teaching Old Khmer to a succession of able graduate students. It is meant to serve the immediate needs of readers embarking on the study of the inscriptions, and assumes that they have some acquaintance with modern Khmer.

Adoration and Glory is a celebration of centuries of artistic achievements of the Khmer peoples, a civilization nearly forgotten. The Khmer empire created one of the world's most glorious traditions of sculpture and architecture, inspired and influenced by the spiritual and in particular the Tantric, Hindu and Buddhist cultures and religions of India.

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.

Excerpt from In the Far East: A Narrative of Exploration and Adventure in Cochin-China, Cambodia, Laos, and Siam:

A considerable portion of the Indo-Chinese peninsula is occupied by the extensive country of Cambodia, or Camboja, known to the natives as Kan-pou-chi. It extends from lat. 8° 47' to 15° N., along the basin of the Mekong, Makiang, or Cambodia river; and is bounded on the north by Laos; on the south, by the Gulf of Siam and the China Sea; on the east, by Cochin-China; and on the west, by Siam.

The illicit traffic of art is an important problem that affects modern life all over the world. This work addresses this issue using the showcase of Cambodia, where looters systematically destroy cultural heritage. Beginning with an overview of Cambodian history and culture, it explores every aspect of the illicit traffic of Cambodian art.