TRAVEL | Angkor - The Bayon Temple

From today, I'll be introducing a series of sites located in the Angkor Archaeological Park, one of the most important archaeological site in South-East Asia. It contains the magnificent remains of the different capitals of the Khmer Empire from the 9th - 15th century. The ruins of Angkor are a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

The structures one sees at Angkor today, more than 100 stone temples in all, are the surviving remains of a grand religious, social and administrative metropolis whose other buildings - palaces, public buildings, and houses - were built of wood and are long since decayed and gone.

The Bayon temple is a Khmer Temple situated at the absolute centre of the ancient city Angkor Thom. Built in the late 12th century by King Jayavarman VII, the Bayon temple is one of the most distinct temples in Siam Reap because of the many serene and massive stone faces that are decorated on the towers of the temple. There are a total of 54 towers each with 4 stone faces, making a total of 216 faces. The person depicted on the towers remain a mystery. Some say it's the King himself, some say it's the Buddha.

The Bayon was the last state temple to be built at Angkor, and the only Angkorian state temple to be built primarily as a Mahayana Buddhist shrine dedicated to the Buddha.






View Larger Map