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Angkor Wat Cambodia Temples

Angkor Wat is a massive Buddhist temple complex located in northern Cambodia. It was originally built as a Hindu temple in the first half of the 12th century. Spread over an area of ​​more than 400 acres, Angkor Wat is said to be the largest religious monument in the world.
Angkor Wat is located about five miles north of the modern Cambodian city of Siem Reap, which has a population of more than 200,000. However, when it was built, it was the capital of the Khmer Empire, which ruled the region at that time. In the Khmer language, the word “Angkor” means “capital city”, while the word “Wat” means “temple”.

In Ruat, Angkor Wat was designed as a Hindu temple, as the religion of Suryavarman II, the ruler of the region at the time, was Hindu. However, by the end of the 12th century, it came to be considered a Buddhist site. Unfortunately, by then Angkor Wat Komer had been plundered by a rival tribe who, on the instructions of the new emperor Jayavarman VII, moved their capital to Angkor Thom and their national temple to Bayon, a few miles north of both historic sites. Was. Were in. Are located.

Although Angkor Wat was not a site of political, cultural, or commercial importance until the 13th century, it remained an important monument to Buddhism until the 1800s. Unlike many historical sites, Angkor Wat was never completely abandoned. Rather, it gradually fell into disuse and disrepair.

Unfortunately, although Angkor Wat remained in use until quite recently – the 1800s – the site has suffered considerable damage, from overgrowth of forests to earthquakes and war.

The French, who ruled the region now known as Cambodia for much of the 20th century, established a commission in the early 1900s to restore the site for tourism purposes. This group also monitored the archaeological projects going on there. It was declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 1992. Although the number of visitors to Angkor Wat was only a few thousand at the time, the historic site now welcomes approximately 500,000 tourists each year – many of whom arrive early in the morning. Photos. The sunrise, which is still popular today, is an extremely magical, spiritual place.