Beth and Michael in siem reap, march 2007

 

Text about the temples copied from the APSARA website (Authority for the Protection and Management of Angkor and the Region of Siem Reap) if you want to know more...

From Lolei, we continued on to the ruin of Preah Ko.  The sacred bull to whom this complex of stone and brick is dedicated, is bordered by a moat to the north and a moat to the south.

The temple was officially called Paramesvara, a name which means Supreme God and usually designates Shiva. Here, however, the name Paramesvara also is the posthumous name of King Jayavarman II, the founder of the Angkorian empire. Preah Ko was dedicated by Indravarman in 879 AD (CE) to the memory of Jayavarman II, represented in the central sanctuary of the eastern side of the base platform. The side towers were dedicated to the ancestors of Indravarman himself.

The rectangular area enclosing the monument measures about 500 meters by 400 meters. The western section may also have once contained other buildings made of less durable materials which served as houses for ordinary inhabitants.

The temple of Preah Ko initiated the tradition of temples dedicated to ancestors which each subsequent Angkorian king had to build, preferably before constructing the temple which would be dedicated to his own destined cult.

From an artistic point of view, we should try to imagine the six sanctuaries of the platform covered in white, finely carved stucco. One can still see remaining sections of this covering which allows us to glimpse the great refinement which the sculptures of the temple once had

  • Preah Ko: looking through a window on the outside wall
  • Preah Ko: doorway in outer wall
  • Preah Ko: overview of the site
  • Preah Ko: wooden scaffolding on the central tower
  • Preah Ko: wooden bracing on the central tower
  • Preah Ko: approach to the central towers
  • Preah Ko: lions facing the sacred bulls, our guide is standing in front
  • Preah Ko: inside the tower looking up
  • Preah Ko: Top of doorway detail
  • Preah Ko: statue and carving detail, corner of tower
  • Preah Ko: lions overlooking sacred bull
  • Preah Ko: inside one of the towers, a Yani (representation of the female, usually topped with the representation of the male (linga) which is missing)
  • Preah Ko: towers with and withour scaffolding
  • Preah Ko: carving detail
  • Preah Ko: detail statuary and carving
  • Preah Ko:sacred bulls