The Gateways & The Causeways
The city is quadrangular in shape and surrounded by walls, 8 m high. Moats, that in earlier times were filled with crocodiles, surround the city and give way to five causeways that leads to gates - North, Sourh, East, West and a Victory Gate. The exquisitely decorated gateways are 60 feet high and are wide enough to allow processions of elephants to pass through. On the top, four huge carved faces of the Bodhisattva, Avalokitesvara look out in north, south, east and west direction.
The causeways have a row of devas on the left and asuras on the right, each holding a naga. The posture here is apparentely a reference to the popular myth of Angkor, the Churning of the Sea of Milk.
Within The Walled City
Within, the city, there are some earlier structures as well as other structures that were constructed during the reign of king Jayavarman and his successors. At every corner of the city, Prasat Chrung or a corner shrine dedicated to Avalokitesvara stand. These shrines are cruciform sandstone structures with an eastward orientation. They have a central tower.
Right in the centre of the city is Jayavarman's state temple, the Bayon. The other important sites are clustered around the Victory Square which is to the north of Bayon Square.
- The Bayon Temple :This is the state temple of King Jayavarman
VII and was constructed in the 13th century. It instantly catches
attention because of the number of smiling faces on the towers that rise
up to central peak.
The Bayon Temple was originally constructed in honour of Lord Shiva and there were plans for only two levels. However, later it was converted into a Mahayana Buddhist temple and the third level was constructed and adorned with Buddha statues. This third level actually has 54 towers, each with four faces of Avalokitesvara at the top. These faces seem to stare at the you all the time, from wherever you might try to see them. On the first level, there are sculptures of Cambodian life while the second level depicts stories from Hindu myths.
- The Baphuon Temple : Northwest of the Bayon temple, stands
the Baphuon Temple which served as the state temple of Udayadityavarman
II in the 11th century. It was initially dedicated to Hindu god Shiva,
however later in the 15th century, it was converted into Buddhist
temple. The temple is close to southern enclosure of the royal palace
and is 120 metres from east-west and 100 metres from north-south. Its
height, sans its tower, scales to 34 meters. The tower, which was
demolished to give place to 9 m long and 70 m tall reclining Buddha
statue, would have made the temple around 50 m tall.
- The Terrace of the Elephants Whenever King Jayanarman VII
had to watch his victorious army making their way back to the city, he
made use of a platform which today is known as the The Terrace of the
Elephants. The platform was also utilised by the king for his public
address and ceremonies. Much of the original structure has been
destroyed for the lack of preservation and what remains today are the
foundation platform of the complex. There are five outworks extending
from the structure towards the Central Square.Life size figures of
garuda and lions can be seen along with elephants and their mahouts.
- Phnom Bakheng
Phnom in Khmer stands for hill and Phnom Bakheng is a 212 feet high hill in the south of Angkot Thom. A temple sits at the top of it dating back to the reign of Yasovarman I. This makes the temple one of the oldest one in the Angkor area. The temple originally had 109 towers but you will not find many today. Phnom Bakheng is around 250 feet square.
- Phimeanakas
Phimeanakas is the royal palace of Angkor, rectangular in shape. As per the records of a Chinese visitor, this royal palace originally had a golden pinnacle, however, as of today, the gold is no longer to be seen. From the upper terrace of the palace, you can catch some fantastic views of the Baphuon Temple.
Siem Reap
A small town located in the western Cambodia, Siem Reap means "Victory over the Thais". It is a reference to the win that the Khmer kingdom achieved over the Thais and strengthened themselves. Siem Reap was once completely undeveloped, but today, you will find a host of luxury hotels and resorts, fine-dining options, shops, galleries and spas.
You can base yourself at this place for 3-4 days to explore the attractions of the area.
Other Attractions
- Ta Prohm : Located to the east of Angkor Thom, Ta Prohm is
entered from the west and left from the east. It was constructed between
the mid 12th century to early 13th century by king Jayavarman VII as a
residence for his mother. It consists of a number of long low buildings
standing on one level which are surrounded by rectangular laterite wall.
To reach the centre of the monument, you need to pass through a series
of towers connected with passages. In Ta Prohm, you can enjoy the beauty
of the jungle and also find some images of Buddha and scenes from the
Great Departure. Ta Prohm is best visited during early morning.
- Preah Neak Pean : Preah Neak Pean is a 12th century Buddhist
temple constructed by king Jayavarman VII. It comprises of a square pool
with four smaller square pool arranged on the axis. A circular island
with a temple is seen in the large central pool. The temple is
surrounded by two nagas whose intertwined tails lend the temple its
name. At one point of time, water from the central pool reached the
other four pool via the ornamental spouts that can still be seen. These
spouts are in shape of an elephant's head, a horse's head, a lion's head
and a human's head. The temple is an outstanding exmpel of the Khmer
architecture.
Getting There
