2010 Chautauqua Course - Angkor

Angkor Wat

Ancient Astronomy and Mathematics in Angkor, Cambodia

August 11-19, 2010

Instructor: Dr. Ed Barnhart

Course Description:

This nine day course will focus on the mathematics and astronomy of the ancient Khmer civilization as seen through a field analysis of Angkor ’s art, architecture, and hieroglyphic texts. For decades the incredible ruins of Angkor were hidden from the world by the rebels of the Khmer Rouge, but Cambodia has now entered an age of peace and new research is revealing some surprising results. Not least among them was a French remote sensing project which proved that Angkor ’s peak population was over one million people, making it the largest city in the world at 1400 AD.

Course participants will spend the first week in Siem Reap, the modern city within Angkor ’s sprawling boundaries, visiting different sections of the city each day. Measurement experiments within the ruins will hunt for hindu inspired sacred geometry proportions in art and architecture and nightly lectures will teach about Khmer astronomy, mathematics, and culture. Elephant safaris within the ruins and a visit to Cambodia ’s Great Lake ( Tonlé Sap ) will also be part of the week’s learning adventure. Ancient Khmer astronomy is also a focus of the course. Participants will visit the city’s sacred libraries, said to be dedicated to the moon. Lectures will investigate the current understanding of astronomy as related in hieroglyphic texts at the site. The timing of the course has been chosen to be in the city during a potentially important day, Zenith Passage. As with the temples Dr. Barnhart has studied in the Maya World, it is quite possible that buildings have been designed to interact with and record Zenith Passage at Angkor .

Click for a more detailed itinerary

For people interested in the following subjects:

astronomy, mathematics, general sciences, architecture, geography, archaeology, anthropology, history, art history, sociology, philosophy

and other related social sciences fields.

Prerequisites:

While not a requirement, participants are encouraged to have at least some knowledge of ancient Khmer culture and the history of Cambodia.

Dr. Ed Barnhart can recommend readings for those interested in learning more before the trip.  The tours will involve climbing ruins in hot and

humid rain forest conditions.  Participants in weak physical condition are encouraged to build strength and stamina before the trip.

Click on this link for recommend readings for those interested in learning more before the trip.

About your instructor:

Dr. Barnhart has worked in Mexico and Central America for the last twenty years as an archaeologist, an explorer, and an instructor. During his four years as the student of Dr. Linda Schele (world renowned for finally breaking the Maya code of hieroglyphics in 1973) he developed a strong background in Maya hieroglyphics, iconography, and archaeoastronomy. During his graduate career, South American iconography and shamanism were also major foci of his studies. From 1998 to 2000 he was the Director of the Palenque Mapping Project, an archaeological survey that discovered over 1000 new structures in the Maya ruins of Palenque. He received his Ph.D. in Anthropology at The University of Texas at Austin in 2001 and is now the Director of the Maya Exploration Center, a non-profit research center based in Austin, Texas and Palenque, Chiapas, Mexico. He and his team are currently investigating archaeoastronomy and ancient geometry in the ruins of Chiapas. Visit www.mayaexploration.org for more information about Dr. Barnhart and the Maya Exploration Center.

Costs:

$1456.00 for double lodging ($1400 if paying by check, not Paypal)

$1976.00 for single room lodging ($1900 if paying by check, not Paypal)

Costs include:

Airport transfers and VIP processing of visas

Lodging in Siem Reap

Ground Transportation

Lake Transportation

Breakfasts and some lunches

Elephant Safari

Museum entry fees

Ruin/Park entry fees

Flights:

Participants are responsible for arranging their own flight reservations to and from Siem Reap, Cambodia before the first day's orientation meeting. Plan on arriving to Siem Reap on August 11 and departing August 19. Flights going through Bangkok seem the best route as of Jan 2010. Since participants come from all over the country, recommending a single flight is impossible. There are many flight options from the USA to Seoul, Bangkok, or Hong Kong and from there to Siem Reap. As of Jan 2010, the average flight from the USA to to Siem Reap about $1500-2200.

Costs do not include:

Airfare to/from Siem Reap

Lunches and dinners in Cambodia

Travel insurance

Tourist visas to Cambodia

tips for service providers (drivers, waiters, maid staff, etc.)

Hotels during the course:

Tara Angkor Hotel in Siem Reap

To apply for this course, you must:

Step 1) Fill out an application through the 2010 Chautauqua Short Course Program at:

http://www.edb.utexas.edu/csme/

The application is located on the left side of the home page

Step 2) Send the $100 application fee to the Chautauqua Program as instructed on the application

Step 3) Send a deposit of $300 to Ahau Travel for the course travel package

(This is so all the lodging and transportation can be reserved ahead of time)

Securing your place in the course in guaranteed with your deposit to Ahau Travel.

Balance payments will be due 30 days before the course.

Send your check to:

Ahau Travel

7301 RR 620 N

Suite 155 #284

Austin, Texas 78726

chautauqua@ahautravel.com

Or pay Ahau Travel with a credit card by Paypal.com with the button below

Immunizations:

Participants in Dr. Barnhart’s courses always ask about whether they need pre-course immunizations. Dr. Barnhart is not a medical professional and this is a question he cannot and should not answer. Each participant should consult his or her personal physician before the course.

Money:

For money in Cambodia, we highly recommend an ATM card and/or a credit card. ATM's are everywhere in Siem Reap available 24-hours a day. You can also use a credit card with a pin number (if you know the pin number). Travelers checks are very difficult to exchange and you could end up spending the entire day at the bank.

Please change some U.S. money in the United States into Cambodian Riels.

The exchange rate as of January 2010 is 1.00 US Dollar = 4150.00 Riels .

International airports have several places to change money.

Sculptures in Angkor Thom

Detailed Itinerary for the 2010 Angkor Course