CHENLA ERA AND FUNAN ERA OF KINGDOM OF CAMBODIA (1st CENTURY -PRESENT DAY)
•Women also tied their hair into a topknot, but adorned the head with a flower. They would also crown the head with a floral circlet made of gold. They wore the Sampot or a floral textile Sarong with a Pidan cloth, matched with a golden belt and held by a new style of Khmer Sarong Kor below the neck.
The most striking development of this period is the ladies-in-waiting of the palace wearing a shawl-like Sbai over the left shoulder to cover the breast and stomach in a Buddhist manner. Royal women wore a Sava, a loosely decorated band of beads worn crosswise.
•Zhou observed that the upper, middle, and lower class khmer dressed differently depending on their social class. The peasants, both men and women kept their chests exposed, walked barefoot, and wore only a piece of cloth wrapped around their waists. The common women wore hair ornaments, golden rings or bracelets. Beautiful women were sent to court to serve the king or his royal family at his whim. All trades were carried out by women. The upper class Khmer were dressed elaborately with sbai, gold headpiece, jewelries, and long intricate styled dressed.
Sava and Sarong Kor :
In contrast, the court lady and Queen have no different that apsara according to their costume but Queen Jayarajadevi and Indradevi carving are the best example with its unique Sava made from Silk feature golden twinkle floral print instead of bead to Apsara . The Queen Indradevi’s crown confirmed a ten point and a large diamond center on headdress .
Name of Book : Cambodian traditional costume.
Writer by the Historian David P. Chandler
Page 316.
