Early medieval · Hindu · Cambodia

Prasat Thom, Koh Ker

Koh Ker, Preah Vihear · 13.7750°, 104.5472°

Shiva as Tribhuvaneshvara (linga)Khmer EmpireKoh KerUNESCO World Heritage

Sacred since

921 CE

first attestation / structure

Standing structure

from 921 (Jayavarman IV)

Khmer Empire

History & significance

The principal temple of Koh Ker, the capital Jayavarman IV held while the Khmer court was away from Angkor, with inscriptions recording the consecration in 921 of a Shiva-linga worshipped as Tribhuvaneshvara, lord of the threefold world. Parts including the moat and inner enclosure appear to predate 921 and were absorbed into the expansion under Jayavarman IV. Two walls, brick within and laterite without at 66 by 55 metres, enclose a court holding the sanctuary, two libraries, nine linga towers in two rows and twelve smaller prasats grouped in threes, all in the sharply distinct Koh Ker style.

Open in Google Maps ↗Wikipedia ↗View on the atlas map