Boeng Mealea Commune (Khmer: ឃុំបឹងមាលា) is located in Svay Leu District of Siem Reap Province. It features seven villages and is home to the grand temple, Prasat Beng Mealea and many more.
On the east side of Phnom Kulen, west of Beng Mealea temple, there are several sandstone quarry sites, some old and one that is still active providing sandstone for the restoration works taking place in Angkor. It’s interesting to note the techniques that seemingly haven’t changed too much with iron picks still in use. In … Read more
Located 550m west of Beng Mealea and 270m southwest of Prasat Duan Chan, Kuk Troap temple features the remnants of a brick/sandstone temple. It’s a small temple whose moat-surrounded mound measures around 25m wide and 30m long. To the east is a basin measuring around 165m x 86m. Interestingly, the site has an east-southeast orientation … Read more
Located around 5km southwest of Beng Mealea, Prasat Sak Kdar features the remnants of what appears to have been a brick temple. On visiting in late 2024, it was quite overgrown, and there wasn’t a lot to see apart from a couple of sandstone blocks and scattered bricks among excavation wells. To the east is … Read more
It is located 2.7km west of Beng Mealea temple and 1.5km east of Sam Yot temple, along the ancient East Road that joined Angkor to Beng Mealea and Preah Khan of Kampong Svay and 500m east of Road 64 and the village of Trapeang Ruessei. When asking about the old road, local villagers pointed us … Read more
Contemporary monastery that was founded in recent times. The site retains several sandstone fragments from an ancient temple. There is some folklore surrounding the site and its remnants. One night, while studying the Dhama, a monk saw a white light in front of the throne. He told the abbot, who did not believe, but for … Read more
Located around 2km northwest of Beng Mealea Temple on the foothills of Phnom Kulen, is a very unique piece of ancient infrastructure. Around 2020, a local discovered a large sandstone head of a Makara (part lion/part sea creature from Hindu mythology). Recently the site has been excavated and restored revealing it was actually part of … Read more
Located just east of Beng Mealea, it’s a small ancient bridge that is still in use today and, quite amazingly, holding up to today’s heavy vehicles. It has been sealed over with bitumen and goes completely unnoticed apart from the locals who live on either side. It’s quite small, only around 13-15 m long and … Read more
A contemporary pagoda that is located west of Beng Mealea and near the ancient sites of Kuk Troap, Daun Chan and Ta Phou. On the pagoda’s east side, fragments of a pair of small lions can be seen. It’s possible that they originated from the nearby Prasat Kuk Troap.
Located on the western side of Beng Mealea’s baray, or Rahal Baray as early French archeologists recorded it, is a very large cruciform sandstone terrace that connects to the eastern entrance of Beng Mealea via a bollarded causeway. At a guess, it is around 70 m long on its east-west axis and 40m wide in … Read more
Laterite bridge oriented East-West with a balustrade decorated with sandstone naga. It is 11 m long and 6.50 m wide. (about a hundred meters west of the northwest corner of the moat.)
Beng Mealea (Khmer: ប្រាសាទបឹងមាលា) is one of the ancient Khmer Empires’ larger temple complexes and is located 40 km east of the main group of temples at Angkor Archeological Park along the ancient royal highway that led to Preah Khan of Kampong Svay. According to the architectural style, similar to that of Angkor Wat, it … Read more
Also recorded as Prasat Daun Chan and Dong Chan, it is located around 400m to the southwest of the western entrance of Beng Mealea Temple. It features an outer laterite enclosure wall with a single cruciform entrance pavilion (gopura) on the eastern side and a single shrine with a library building in the southeast corner. … Read more
Also known as Kong Phlouk Temple. It is an unusual site (for the Angkor area), featuring a stepped laterite pyramid, and not to be missed on an excursion to Beng Mealea. The site is found at the southeast corner of the baray of Beng Mealea and is unusually aligned on a north-south axis. According to … Read more
Also known as Chrey Temple, Prasat Chrey and even Prasat Chrek. It is sandstone temple with two libraries, outer wall with entry gopura, terrace (listed here), and basin. It is a feature of the ancient Royal Road network and one of the several structures that early French researchers would classify as “Temple d’étape” (waypoint or … Read more
Prasat Kansaeng, or Kuk Top Thom, is located inside the moat and in the southwest quadrant of Beng Mealea Temple’s large grounds. It is what’s known as a “firehouse” or “Vahnigriha” that was a feature along the East Road. Outside of those in Angkor, it is the first standing firehouse as we head east out … Read more
Large cruciform sandstone terrace that was connected on the west side by a causeway to Pr. Chrey. At a guess, it is one meter or so in height, around 20 m long and 4 m wide running east-west, and similar running north-south making a cruciform shape. It features ornate decoration and molding typical of the … Read more
Also known as Prasat Toab Chey Thom, Teap Chei, and Torp Chey Thom. It is a ruinous walled sandstone temple that was a common feature along the ancient royal road network along the section from Angkor to Preah Khan (of Kampong Svay). French archeologists recorded this temple type as “Temples d’étape” or staging place. They … Read more
Also known as Prasat Teap Chei or Prasat Toap Chey Toch, it is a “resthouse” or “firehouse” that was a feature along the ancient East & Northwest Royal Road. It is currently kept cleared and there is a foot trail connecting to the nearby Toap Chey Thom. Images 2024 Images 2021 Historical Notes The neighbouring site of … Read more
Located around 5km southwest of Beng Mealea, Prasat Sam Yot features the remnants of what appears to be a late 10th-11th century temple. On visiting in late 2024, it was quite overgrown and appeared to be a single sandstone shrine that opened to the east with a forebody and had chambered false entrances around its … Read more
Scant remains of a brick temple
Laterite bridge reported as being 15m x 7m. Location unconfirmed. Noted as being “On the road linking Angkor to Beng Mealea, about 2 km southwest of Beng Mealea and 1.2 km south of the village of Toek Lich”
There is a sandstone quarry just north of Prasat Beng Mealea that forms part of a river bed. It is quite fascinating to see where the temple originated and the clear lines of where large blocks of sandstone would have been chiselled. It’s also a nice spot to relax, as many do. This creek continues … Read more
Also recorded as Phty (Pr.). A recently restored shrine located in the center of Beng Mealea’s baray comprised of a tall column atop of which is a seated Buddha on Naga. An APSARA team restored the shrine with local funding. Image prior to restoration (via information.gov.kh) You can reach the site via a trail leading … Read more
Located around 8km east of Beng Mealea temple, it’s a small laterite bridge on the ancient East Road that joined Angkor, Beng Mealea, and Preah Khan of Kampong Svay. It’s only around 5m in length and a typical 7-8m in width. It used a post and lintel style construction, and remnants of a sandstone balustrade … Read more
Laterite bridge with 8 arches and balustrade with naga (not seen), recorded as measuring 30 meters long and 2.8 meters high. As of 2021, the bridge is still in daily use and heavily overgrown on either side, growth which will probably die off during the drier moths. Parts of the balustrade can be seen sitting … Read more