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You are here: Home / Travels / Cambodia / The Ruins of Angkor / The Bayon

The Bayon

The Bayon, the central temple in the city of Angkor Thom, known for its faces and bas-relief carvings.

The Bayon is the central temple of the Angkor Thom compound, and was built by Jayavarman VII and VIII in the late 12th to 13th centuries. It is located in the exact center of Angkor Thom, the symbolic center of the universe. Because Jayavarman VII was a passionate Buddhist and Jayavarman VIII an equally passionate Hindu, it has a combination of Buddhist and Hindu themes. Because of its central location and the fortifications surrounding Angkor Thom, later kings found it easier to remodel the palace according to their own beliefs, rather than reconstruct it. As a result, it has leftovers from many religions

The Bayon is known for its face towers–there were originally 49 of them, of which 37 are still standing. Most have four large smiling faces, but some have three or only two, and the central tower has more (!). These faces are quite large–4-8 feet across.

The other main feature of the Bayon is the bas-relief carvings. There are two sets, one outside depicting scenes from daily life, and one inside, with Hindu religious themes (added by Jayavarman VIII after the death of Jayavarman VII). I took photos of some of the more amusing ones…

[Show as slideshow]
The Bayon The Bayon. Each of the towers has faces carved into it, usually 4.
Bayon Face-Tower One of the face-towers. (Take a closer look, the faces are overgrown by moss.)

Tien by Bayon Face-Tower Me by another face-tower. These are farther behind me than you think, about 10-15 feet.
The Bayon: Tien Kissing Stone Face Me kissing a face. (Okay, so I'm kissing its nose; it's a Platonic relationship, OK? ;-) )

Bayon Rubble The interior--not yet restored.
Bayon Wall Us gaping at the bas-reliefs (which go about ten feet up the wall), in the outer gallery.

The Bayon Bas-Relief: Boar-fight Boar-fighting (notice the bristles along the spine).
The Bayon Bas-Relief: Bull In the words of our guide, "Army win its battle--warriors kill bull, for make party."

The Bayon Bas-Relief: Childbirth Left, a pregnant woman gives birth; right, a man goes hunting with bow and arrow.
The Bayon Bas-Relief: Lice Picking lice out of a friend's hair.

The Bayon Bas-Relief: Turtle A woman's turtle bites the man in front of her.
The Bayon Bas-Relief: Chinese Restaurant The world's first Chinese restaurant! Here, a customer orders. (You can tell they're Chinese by the hairstyle.)

The Bayon Bas-Relief: Chinese Restaurant The kitchen of the Chinese restaurant.
The Bayon Bas-Relief: Tiger Man being eaten by a tiger (yum!)

The Bayon Bas-Relief: Warboat Chams going off to war in a warboat. You can tell they're Chams from the elongated earlobes.
The Bayon Bas-Relief: Crocodile Man falling out of a warboat and being eaten by a crocodile. (They sure had fun in those days...!)

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