Banteay Chhmar

Banteay Chhmar is a vast Khmer temple complex in the plains northwest of Angkor. Built under King Jayavarman VII in the late twelfth and early thirteenth centuries, its galleries, towers and enclosing moat formed a ceremonial centre on a grand scale. Carved walls depict battles and royal processions as well as scenes of daily life. Among its most striking images are many-armed forms of the bodhisattva Avalokiteshvara.

The temple was dedicated to the memory of Prince Srindrakumara and four companions who, according to its inscription, had saved him in battle against the Cham. Its reliefs evoke the wars and religious devotion of Jayavarman's reign, when Buddhism shaped a remarkable programme of royal building across the Khmer realm. The great complex remained a powerful testament to the reach of Angkor beyond its capital.

The later city of Serei Saophoan lies nearby.