Angkor Wat Temple

ANGKOR WAT TEMPLE

Heritage Of Humanity And World Wonder

Declared By UNESCO On 14 December 1992

As Tangible Culture Heritage

UNESCO considers Angkor Wat to be “one of the most important archaeological sites in Southeast Asia” and to many who have had the privilege and opportunity to visit the treasured discovery, it is simply awesome and indeed one of the seven wonders of the world.

The largest religious monument in the Angkor complex, Angkor Wat is an architectural masterpiece. Originally built in the first half of the 12th century (1113-1150) by King Suryavarman II as a Hindu temple dedicated to the god Vishnu for the Khmer Empire, it gradually transformed into a Buddhist temple. Its perfect composition, balance, proportions, reliefs, and sculpture make it one of the finest monuments in the world. 

With its orientation towards the west, experts have induced that it was a funeral temple for King Suryavarman II because it faces the setting sun and death (west). The bas reliefs, designed for viewing from left to right in the order of the Hindu funeral ritual, support this function.