Photos

The Bayon.

When King Jayavarman VII constructed his walled capital city of Angkor Thom in the years following his coronation in 1181 A.D., he built his state temple, now known as the Bayon, at the center of the city. A devout Mahayana Buddhist, he dedicated the temple to the Buddha and included within it numerous statues of minor local deities identified with the nobles of his court or associated with the far-off the districts of his realm. Today, the Bayon is known especially for the jungle of "face-towers" (towers with massive stone carvings depicting the face of the king himself) on its upper level, and for its extensive and fascinating bas reliefs, depicting not only mythological and historical events but also the everyday life of the Angkorian Khmer, in the galleries below.