Constructed: Late 9th – Early 10th century C.E.
Religion: Hindu (Shiva)
King/Patron: Yasovarman I
Style: Bakheng
Phnom Bakheng was constructed
more than two centuries before the Angkor Wat. It is a Hindu temple originally
built in the form of a temple mountain dedicated to Shiva. Historians believe
that Phnom Bakheng was in its heyday, the principal temple of the Angkor
region. It was the architectural centerpiece of a new capital that
Yasovarman built when he moved the court from the capital Hariharalaya in the
Roluos area located to the southeast.
Located atop a hill, this is
the most popular tourist spot for sunset views of the much bigger Angkor Wat
temple which lies amid the jungle about 1.5 km away.