Angkor Thom

At the heart of Angkor Thom, which is a city, is the 12th century Bayon, the mesmerizing state temple of Jayavarman VII. It epitomises the creative genius and inflated ego of Cambodia’s most celebrated king. Its 54 gothic towers are famously decorated with 216 gargantuan smiling faces of Avalokiteshvara that bear more than a passing resemblance to the great king himself. The Bayon is decorated 1.2km of extraordinary bas-reliefs incorporating more than 11,000 figures, depicting everyday life in 12th-century Cambodia.