Angkor Wat Temple Sunset, Siem Reap, Cambodia
© Artie Photography (Artie Ng)/Moment/Getty Images
Stories etched in stone
Angkor Wat has been an important Buddhist center through most of its nearly 900-year history, so why is it covered in stone-carved scenes of Hindu mythology? The complex was built in 1150 CE under king Suryavarman II, a devotee of the Khmer Empire's traditional Hinduism. Within just a few decades—two kings and an enemy invasion later—the new Buddhist monarch Jayavarman VII began rededicating the temple to his own religion. Though some Hindu elements were removed, many remain: Bas-reliefs depict multitudes of apsaras and other Hindu figures, covering more than 12,000 square feet of the structure.
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