Prasat Sambor Prei Kuk

 Sambor Prei (Khmer: ប្រាសាទសំបូរព្រៃគុក, Prasat Sambor Prei Kuk) is an archaeological site in Cambodia located in Kampong Thom Province, 30 km (19 mi) north of Kampong Thom, the provincial capital, 176 km (109 mi) east of Angkorand 206 km (128 mi) north of Phnom Penh. The now ruined complex dates back to the Pre-Angkorian Chenla Kingdom (late 6th to 9th century), established by king Isanavarman I as central royal sanctuary and capital, known then as Isanapura. The Cambodian government has included Sambor Prei Kuk on its Tentative List of UNESCO World Heritage Sites.

Located on the Eastern bank of the Tonle Sap lake, close to the Sen River, the central part of Sambor Prei Kuk is divided into three main groups. Each group has a square layout surrounded by a brick wall. The structures of the overall archaeological area were constructed at variable times: the southern and north groups (7th century) by Isanavarman I, who is considered a possible founder of the city and the central group (later date).

The buildings of Sambor Prei Kuk are characteristic of the Pre-Angkorean period with a simple external plan. The principal material is brick, but sandstone is also used for certain structures. Architectural features include numerous prasats, octagonal towers, shiva lingams and yonis, ponds and reservoirs, and lion sculptures. Sambor Prei Kuk is located amidst mature sub-tropical forests with limited undergrowth. The area has been mined and could still contain unexploded ordnance.

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Siem Reap Transport Service-Private Tuk Tuk and Taxi Driver

Getting Around the Temples and Siem Reap, Cambodia.

Siem Reap city is almost small enough to get around on foot, but not quite. The Angkor Park entrance is 8 kilometers from town and the temples inside the park are as much as 3-4 kilometers apart, ordinarily requiring some sort of transportation to tour. Tuk-tuks, and car taxis are the most popular forms of transportation. In town it’s always easy to find tuk-tuks and motodups for short trips. Transportation to and around the temples is usually hired by the day. To avoid later misunderstandings make sure to negotiate the details of the driver’s services carefully – exact price, what times you expect the day to begin/end, availability during lunch hours, limitations on your itinerary, extra charges for temple on the ‘Grand Circuit’ or distant temples, etc.

Moto-Remorques (tuk-tuks)

Moto-remorques are the most common form of transportation in town – the semi-enclosed trailer offering a comparatively pleasant ride. And very easy to find. Just step to the curb and they will find you. For short trips around town, foreigners are expected to pay $3-$5. Bargain! Full day rates for transportation to the temples: $15-$20/day (perhaps a couple dollars less if you bargain.) Additional charge for distant temples.

Private Car Taxis

Private car taxis offer a comfortably air-conditioned way to tour the temples, though they are the most expensive option. Rates start at about $30-$45/day plus additional charges for distant temples off the main circuits. Taxis from the airport to town also offer taxi/tour services to the temples.

Angkor Wat permit – Everyone needs a permit to enter the Angkor temples unless you are Cambodian or related to a Cambodian. A 1 day is $37USD, 3 day is $62 USD, and 7 day is $72.

Ta Phrum Temple (Jungle Temple)

Ta Phrum Temple

Ta Prohm is the modern name of a temple at Angkor, Siem Reap Province, Cambodia, built in the Bayon style largely in the late 12th and early 13th hcenturies and originally called Rajavihara. 

Located approximately one kilometre east of Angkor Thom and on the southern edge of the East Baray, it was founded by the Khmer King Jayavarman VII as a Mahayana Buddhist monastery and university. Unlike most Angkorian temples, Ta Prohm has been left in much the same condition in which it was found, the photogenic and atmospheric combination of trees growing out of the ruins and the jungle surroundings have made it one of Angkor's most popular temples with visitors.

About Trees

The trees growing out of the ruins are

perhaps the most distinctive feature of 

TaProhm and have prompted more writers to descriptive excess than any other feature of Angkor.Two species predominate but sources disagree on their identification the larger is either the silk-cotton tree

(Ceiba pentandra) or thitpok Tetrameles nudiflora, and the smaller is either the strangler fig (Ficus gibbosa) or Gold Apple (Diospyros decandra). Indulging in what might be regarded as "descriptive excess," Angkor scholar Maurice Glaize observed, "On every side, in fantastic over-scale, the trunks of the silk-cotton trees soar skywards under a shadowy green canopy, their long spreading skirts trailing the ground and their endless roots coiling more like reptiles than plants.

Angkor Wat Temple

Angkor Wat (Khmer: អង្គរវត្ត) is the largest HINDU temple complex in the world. The temple was built by King SURYAVARMAN II in the early 12th century in YASODHARAPURA (Khmer: យសោធរបុរៈ, present-day Angkor), the capital of the Khmer Empire, as his state temple and eventual mausoleum. Breaking from the SHAIVISM tradition of previous kings, Angkor Wat was instead dedicated to VISHNU. As the best-preserved temple at the site, it is the only one to have remained a significant religious centre since its foundation – first Hindu, dedicated to the god VISHNU, then BUDDHIST. The temple is at the top of the high classical style of Khmer Architecture. It has become a symbol of CAMBODIA, appearing on Its National Flag, and it is the country's prime attraction for visitors.

Angkor Wat combines two basic plans of Khmer temple architecture: the Temple Mountain and the later GALLERIED TEMPLE, based on early DRAVIDIAN Architecture, with key features such as the JAGATI. It is designed to represent MOUNT MERU, home of the DEVAS in HINDU MYTHOLOGY: within a MOAT and an outer wall 3.6 kilometres (2.2 mi) long are three rectangular galleries, each raised above the next. At the centre of the temple stands a QUINCUNX of towers. Unlike most Angkorian temples, Angkor Wat is oriented to the west; scholars are divided as to the significance of this. The temple is admired for the grandeur and harmony of the architecture, its extensive BAS-RELIEFS, and for the numerous DEVATAS adorning its walls.The modern name, Angkor Wat, means "Temple City" or "City of Temples" in Khmer; Angkor, meaning "city" or "capital city", is a vernacular form of the word Nokor (នគរ), which comes from the SANSKRIT word nagar. WAT is the Khmer word for "temple grounds", derived from the PALI word "vatta" Prior to this time the temple was known as Preah Pisnulok (Vara Vishnuloka in Sanskrit), after the posthumous title of its founder.

Angkor is a region of Cambodia that served as the seat of the Khmer Empire, which flourished from approximately the 9th to 15th centuries. The Angkorian period began in AD 802, when the Khmer Hindu monarch Jayavarman II declared himself a "universal monarch" and "god-king", until 1351, when Angkor first fell under Ayutthayan suzainry, to 1431, when Ayutthaya put down a rebellion and sacked the Khmer capital, causing its population to migrate south to Longvek. The ruins of Angkor are located amid forests and farmland to the north of the Great Lake (Tonlé Sap) and south of the Kulen Hills, near modern-day Siem Reap, and are a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Bayon Temple

The Bayon (Khmer: ប្រាសាទបាយ័ន, Prasat Bayon) is a well-known and richly decorated Khmer temple at Angkor in CAMBODIA. Built in the late 12th century or early 13th century as the official state temple of the MAHAYANA BUDDHIST King JAYAVARMAN VII, the Bayon stands at the centre of Jayavarman's capital, ANGKOR THOM. Following Jayavarman's death, it was modified and augmented by later HINDU and THERAVADA Buddhist kings in accordance with their own religious preferences.The Bayon's most distinctive feature is the multitude of serene and massive stone faces on the many towers which jut out from the upper terrace and cluster around its central peak. The temple is known also for two impressive sets of BAS-RELIEFS, which present an unusual combination of MYTHOLOGICAL, HISTORICAL, and mundane scenes. The current main conservatory body, the JAPANESE GOVERNMENT team for the Safeguarding of Angkor (the JSA) has described the temple as "the most striking expression of the baroque style" of KHMER Architecture, as contrasted with the classical style of Angkor Wat.

Bayon has some 50 towers, with four huge carved faces on most of them. Each of the four faces are four metres high and oriented toward the four points of the compass. The faces all have the same strange smile and closed eyes, creating a mysterious and serene countenance, representing an all-knowing state of inner peace, and perhaps a state of Nirvana.

There is debate as to who the faces actually represent, and some theories put forward say that they are the face of a Bodhisattva (Buddhism's compassionate and enlightened being), or a combination of Buddha and Jayavarman VII. Bayon was constructed as Jayavarman VII's state-temple, and it represents the height of his massive building program.

Bayon is rich in decoration, and the bas-reliefs on the exterior walls of the lower level and on the upper level are outstanding. The bas-reliefs on the southern wall are of scenes from a sea battle between the Khmer and the Cham. However, it is not known if they represent the Cham invasion of 1177AD, or a later victorious battle for the Khmer. There are also interesting and extensive carvings of scenes from everyday life, including market scenes, religious rituals, cockfighting, chess games and childbirth. Of note are the unfinished carvings on some walls, which were probably not finished due to the death of Jayavarman VII.

Banteay Srey Temple (Lady Temple)

Banteay Srei or Banteay Srey (KHMER: ប្រាសាទបន្ទាយស្រី) is a 10th century CAMBODIAN temple dedicated to the HINDUGOD SHIVA. Located in the area of ANGKOR in CAMBODIA. It lies near the hill of PHNOM DEI, 25 km (16 mi) north-east of the main group of temples that once belonged to the medieval capitals of YASODHARAPURA and ANGKOR THOM. Banteay Srei is built largely of red SANDSTONE, a medium that lends itself to the elaborate decorative wall carvings which are still observable today. The buildings themselves are miniature in scale, unusually so when measured by the standards of Angkorian construction. These factors have made the temple extremely popular with tourists, and have led to its being widely praised as a "precious gem", or the jewel of Khmer art.

Banteay Srei is a Khmer temple dedicated to the ancient Hindu God Shiva which was constructed in the 10th century and consecrated about 962. Following the destruction of Angkor by the Siamese armies this Temple was left to be covered in forest until it was rediscovered in 1914. We now know the history of the monuments from the original stone stela which was discovered in 1936.It is located 25 kilometers north east of Angkor Thom. It is the fourth most interesting set of monuments after ANGKOR WAT, ANGKOR THOM and the Bayon and PREAH KHAN. The trip by road vehicle also offers a good view of Cambodian countryside.The name ''Banteay Srei in Khmer means '' Citadel of Women ''. Originally it was called a Shiva Temple ''Great Lord of the Threefold World''. The name, Citadel of Women, today has no significance save it may refer to the numerous BAS RELIEF CARVINGS of DEVATAS throughout the monuments.

Beong Melea Temple

Beng Mealea (Khmer: ប្រាសាទបឹងមាលា, its name means "lotus pond") is a temple in the Angkor Wat style located 40 km east of the main group of temples at Angkor, Cambodia on the ancient royal highway to Preah Khan Kompong Svay. It was built as a Hindu temple, but there are some carvings depicting Buddhist motifs. Its primary material is sandstone and it is largely unrestored, with trees and thick brush thriving amidst its towers and courtyards and many of its stones lying in great heaps. For years it was difficult to reach, but a road recently built to the temple complex of KohKer passes Beng Mealea and more visitors are coming to the site, as it is 77 km from SiemReap. The history of the temple is unknown and it can be dated only by its architectural style, identical to Angkor Wat, so scholars assumed it was built during the reign of king SuryavarmanII in the early 12th century smaller in size than Angkor Wat, the king's main monument, Beng Mealea nonetheless ranks among the Khmer Empire's larger temples: the gallery which forms the outer enclosure of the temple is 181 m by 152 m. It was the center of a town, surrounded by a moat 1025 m by 875 m large and 45 m wide.

Beng Mealea is oriented toward the east, but has entranceways from the other three cardinal directions. The basic layout is three enclosing galleries around a central sanctuary, collapsed at present. The enclosures are tied with "cruciform cloisters", like Angkor Wat. structures known as libraries lie to the right and left of the avenue that leads in from the east. There is extensive carving of scenes from Hindu mythology, including the Churning of the Sea of Milk and Vishnu being borne by the bird god Garuda. Causeways have long balustrades formed by bodies of the seven-headed Naga serpent. It was built mostly of Sandstone, Beng Mealea is only 7 km far from the Angkorian sandstone quarries of Phnom Kulen, as the crow flies. Presumably sandstone blocks used for Angkor were transported along artificial water canals and passed from here. Despite of lack of information, the quality of architecture and decorations has drawn the attention of French scholars just from its discovery.

Koh Ker

Koh ker (Northeast of Siem Reap, 127km)

Abandoned to the forests of the north, Koh Ker (admission US$10), capital of the Angkorian empire from AD 928 to AD 944, was long one of Cambodia’s most remote and inaccessible temple complexes. However, this has now changed thanks to recent de-mining and the opening of a new toll road from Dam Dek (via Beng Mealea) that puts Koh Ker (pronounced kah-kei) within day-trip distance of Siem Reap. But to really appreciate the temples – the area has 42 major structures in an area that measures 9km by 4km – it’s necessary to spend the night.

Several of the most impressive pieces in the National Museum in Phnom Penh come from Koh Ker, including the huge garuda (mythical half-man, half-bird creature) that greets visitors in the entrance hall and a unique carving depicting a pair or wrestling monkey-kings.

Most visitors start at Prasat Krahom (Red Temple), the second-largest structure at Koh Ker, which is named for the red bricks from which it is constructed. Sadly, none of the carved lions for which this temple was once known remain, though there’s still plenty to see – stone archways and galleries lean hither and thither and impressive stone carvings grace lintels, doorposts and slender window columns. A naga-flanked causeway and series of sanctuaries, libraries and gates lead past trees and vegetation-covered ponds. Just west of Prasat Krahom, at the far end of a half-fallen colonnade, are the remains of an impressive statue of Nandin.

The principal monument at Koh Ker is Prasat Thom (Prasat Kompeng), a 55m-wide, 40m-high sandstone-faced pyramid with seven tiers that’s just west of Prasat Krahom. This striking structure, which looks like it could almost be a Mayan site somewhere on the Yucatan Peninsula, offers some spectacular views across the forest from its summit. Look out for the giant garuda under the collapsed chamber at the top of the vertigo-inducing stairs. Some 40 inscriptions, dating from 932 to 1010, have been found at Prasat Thom. South of this central group is a 1185m-by-548m baray (reservoir) known as the Rahal. It is fed by Stung Sen, which supplied water to irrigate the land in this arid area.
Some of the largest Shiva linga (phallic symbols) in Cambodia can still be seen in four temples about 1km northeast of Prasat Thom. The largest is in Prasat Thneng, and Prasat Leung (Prasat Balang) is similarly well endowed.
Other interesting temples: Prasat Bram (Prasat Pram), the first you come to after passing the toll booths (it’ll be on your left), which is named in honour of its five towers, two of which are smothered by strangler figs; Prasat Neang Khmau (Prasat Nean Khmau), a bit further north and on your right, with some fine lintels decorating its otherwise bland exterior; and Prasat Chen (Prasat Chhin), about halfway from the toll booths to Prasat Krahom, where the statue of the wrestling monkeys was discovered.
Koh Ker is one of the least-studied temple areas from the Angkorian period. Louis Delaporte visited in 1880 during his extensive investigations into Angkorian temples. It was surveyed in 1921 by the great Henri Parmentier for an article in the Bulletin de l’École d’Extrême Orient, but no restoration work was ever undertaken here. Archaeological surveys were carried out by Cambodian teams in the 1950s and 1960s, but all records vanished during the destruction of the 1970s, helping to preserve this complex as something of an enigma.