Angkor Thom - the ancient capital city of the Khmer Kingdom
Apart from Angkor Wat, there is a great temple in the Angkor complex. That is Angkor Thom - the oldest ancient capital of Khmer. Let's discover Angkor Thom in your tours in Cambodia!!!
About Angkor Thom
Angkor Thom (Khmer: អង្គរធំ) is the latest and longest capital city of the Khmer Empire. It was built by King Jayavarman VII at the end of the 12th century. The shrine is 9 square kilometers in size, with many temples dating from earlier periods as well as temples built by Jayavarman and his successors. At the center of the city, there is the national temple of Jayavarman, Bayon temple, with other monuments, gathered around the Victory Square just north of the temple.
Angkor Thom - the ancient capital city of the Khmer Kingdom
The geographical location of Angkor Thom
Angkor Thom is located on the shore of Tonle Sap lake, about a quarter mile from the lake. The south gate of Angkor Thom is 7.2 km north of Siem Reap, 1.7 km north of the entrance to Angkor Wat. The walls which are 8 meters high and 3 kilometers long are built of the beehive. In each direction such as East, West, South or North, there is a gate. The roads lead from the gate straight to the Bayon temple in the city center.
Because Bayon does not have his own walls or trenches, archaeologists explain that the city walls and trenches represent the mountains and seas surrounding Bayon's Meru Mount (Glaize 81). Another gate - the Victory Gate is located 500 meters away from the east gate. Victory Road runs parallel to the east road leading to Victory Square and the Royal Palace in the north of Bayon.
The architecture of Angkor Thom
Angkor Thom is built of the beehive, in the style of Bayon - a unique architectural style which is similar to the Renaissance-Baroque. This architecture expressed through the scale of the building with human-faced towers at the entrance city and naga statue at each tower in the temple.
Angkor Thom - the ancient capital city of the Khmer Kingdom
Bayon Temple in Angkor Thom has the statues like mysterious smiling heads with a total of 256 face stones on 54 towers looking through Bayon's directions. The entrance to Angkor Thom is extremely impressive. The two sides are the God statues embracing the body of a 7-head snake. These statues are a few hundred meters long along the entrance to this ancient city.
At present, Angkor Thom is only a ruin. The inside city is the dense forest with high trees, vines everywhere. However, the remains of relics are absolutely enough to prove that Angkor Thom in Cambodia is really "the great capital city" as its name. In addition to the Bayon Temple, visitors can visit several temples such as Phimeanakas, Baphuon, Prah Palilay, Prasat Suor Prat, etc. In 1992, Angkor Thom was recognized as a World Heritage Site by UNESCO.
The popular hotels near Angkor Thom
Situated in the heart of Siem Riep city, adjacent to the shopping malls, it is very convenient for tourists to visit Angkor Wat, Angkor Thom, Night Market, Angkor National Museum, etc. These following hotels always get the love of many visitors by the high quality of rooms, many useful services, and quite reasonable prices.
Some popular hotels:
- Velkommen Guesthouse Siem Reap Hotel
- The Luxury Concept Hostel
- Angkorwall Ho Ho Hotel
- Angkor Orchid Central Hotel
- Gloria Angkor Hotel
- Cheathata Angkor Hotel
- Angkor Home Hotel
Notes when visiting Angkor Thom
Angkor Thom - the ancient capital city of the Khmer Kingdom
In order that the trip to the mystical Angkor Thom temple become more perfect, you should note some following issues:
- The entrance ticket to Angkor Thom is $ 20/ per day, $ 40/ 3 days and $ 60/ per week. You should not buy a $ 20 ticket because you cannot travel the whole Angkor Thom in a day.
- The opening hours are from 5:30 am to 5:30 pm. The ticket offices start to work from 5:00 am.
- The proper time to visit Angkor Thom is in the early morning to avoid the harsh sunshine at noon. Moreover, the dawn and sunset moments in Angkor Thom are extremely romantic and breathtaking.
- Angkor is sacred holy land, you should dress politely, secretly and avoid being not allowed to visit.
- Do not buy unnecessary goods at the relic sites because you may be fooled to buy goods which are more expensive than usual. You can prepare yourself for snacks and drinks during your trip.
- Take care of the cases bearing the name of the charity or temple conservation donation to cheat tourists out of money.
- You should also pay attention to the issue of begging for money at the monument.
- You also should prepare the skin cream, sunscreen, insect repellent because, in Angkor Thom, there are many insects, especially mosquitoes.
Besides the mighty Angkor Wat, Angkor Thom is not less mysterious which attracts a large number of visitors when visiting Cambodia. To know more information about Cambodia vacation tours, via our website. Share this article if it is useful for you. Have a wonderful trip to Angkor Thom!
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