Location: About 1.5km north of AngkorWat King: Jayavarman VII Date: 12th-13th century Religion: Buddhist

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"Angkor" comes from "nagara", which means "town" or "city", "thom" is the Khmer word for "big" or "large". The area of about 10 square kms is surrounded by a huge wall some 8 metres in height and a moat a 100 metres wide, now largely dry. In the wall are a number of large gates, the largest being in the center of the north and south walls. Two are set in the eastern wall.
At it's peak Ankor Thom may have had a population of a million people, more than any other city in the world at that time. Inside the walls a number of kings had their residences built. As houses for mortal people were all built in wood nothing remains of those today.
The top picture shows the road through the south gate which leads up to the Bayon temple in the exact middle of the city of Angkor Thom. At the sides of the causeway leading up to the gate you will find a row of 54 stone figures on each side, gods on the left and demons on the right. A number of heads have gone missing and some originals are being replaced by copies to prevent further theft. The gates themselves are 20 metres in height and rest at the sides of ornately carved elephant trunks. They are crowned by four impressive carved faces of the Hindu god Loki.