In the Angkorian period, there are bell trees with five elements (the most represented) and others with three (a single example) portable or suspended in a fixed manner. The iconography and the objects arising from archaeological excavations attest it.
On the bas-relief of the Historic Procession of Angkor Wat, two Brahmins carry a tree with five bells of the left hand. The bells are mounted on a flexible shaft. The Brahmin in the foreground holds, with his right hand, a striker consisting of a handle surmounted by a cylinder with braces, perhaps a plaiting in basketry or a cloth. The game probably consisted in hitting the bells up and down in a sliding movement.
The only representation of a three-bells tree originates from the Bayon, a high relief stacked among other blocks in the northwestern courtyard of the temple. It does seem complete as well. Recall that the Bayon was a Buddhist temple. The five bells have a Hindu symbolism. The three bells could then symbolize the three refuges of the Buddhism: Buddha, dharma, sangha.
Thanks to scattered bell-tree elements from archaeological excavations at the Vat Bo archaeological repository in Siem Reap, we were able to reconstruct the instrument and make it sound (opposite). We have assembled three bells of the same making appearing to have belonged to the same instrument. We added two more disparate bells. This instrument is still known today in India with bells organized along a rigid axis. It consists of a variable number of elements ordered of size, but without seeking a particular tuning.