KOREA FOUNDATION

An Apsara dancer, wearing a splendid headdress and adorned with exquisite accessories, has become a symbol of the nation of Cambodia. In Khmer, the dance is called “Robam Tep Apsara,” belonging to the school of classical Khmer dance. The dance was created by Queen Sisowath Kossamak, the wife of King Norodom Suramarit, who resigned from 1955 to 1960 and was then passed down to their granddaughter Princess Norodom Buppha Devi, thus living on to the present day.

The Khmer Apsara dance and the costume and accessories worn by the dancers are embodied in sculptures of Apsara. An Apsara is a female spirit of water and cloud widely seen not only in Cambodia but in other Asian countries influenced by Hinduism and Buddhist culture. She is known as a dancer who performs for gods and heroes in a temple with her husband Gandharva. (Interestingly, in the Korean Buddhist tradition, a Gandharva is a heavenly musician who disturbs practitioners with his cacophonous music.) When visiting Khmer temples such as Angkor Wat, you will be greeted by countless depictions of a topless Apsara decorating the ancient structures.

Like other traditional Khmer dances, every aspect of the Apsara dance—the costume, accessories, gestures, and hand movements of the dancers—tells a story. When watching the Apsara dance while listening to the bewitching traditional Khmer music, it feels as if the ancient spirits adorning the temple walls have come alive, dancing among us in human form.