Beng Mealea or Bung Mealea (Khmer: ប្រាសាទបឹងមាលា, the name means "lotus pond" [1]) is a temple in the Angkor Wat period [2]: 118-119 located 40 km east of the main group of temples in Angkor , in Cambodia, on the former royal highway of Preah Khan Kompong Svay.

The temple

Map of Beng Mealea, from a drawing of Leon de Beylie (1849-1910). In red, the way partially equipped to visit the temple.

It was built as a Hindu temple, but there are some sculptures depicting Buddhist motifs. [1] Its primary material is sandstone and is largely unrestored, with trees and thick brush thriving amidst its towers and courtyards and many of its stones in large mounds. For years it was difficult to reach but a recently built road to the temple complex of Koh Ker passes Beng Mealea and more visitors are coming to the site as they are 77 km from Siem Reap by road.

The corridor in the temple.

The history of the temple is unknown and can be dated only by the architectural style, identical to Angkor Wat, so scholars assumed that it was built during the reign of King Suryavarman II at the beginning of the 12th century. [1] Smaller than Angkor Wat, the king's main monument, Beng Mealea, however, is among the largest temples of the Khmer empire: the gallery that forms the outer enclosure of the temple is 181 m by 152 m. It was the center of a city, surrounded by a moat of 1025 m by 875 m of width and 45 m of width.

Beng Mealea is oriented to the east, but has entries from the other three directions of the cardinal. The basic layout is of three surrounding galleries around a central sanctuary, collapsed in the present. The cabinets are linked to "cruciform cloisters" like Angkor Wat. Structures known as libraries are located on the right and left of the avenue leading from the east. There is an extensive sculpture of scenes from Hindu mythology, including the Churning of the Sea of ​​Milk and Vishnu being carried by the God of the Garuda bird. The sidewalks have long balustrades formed by bodies of the seven-headed Naga snake.

It was built mainly in sandstone: Beng Mealea is only 7 km from Angkoran sandstone quarries of Phnom Kulen as the crow flies. Presumably, the sandstone blocks used for Angkor were transported along artificial water channels and passed from here. [1] Despite the lack of information, the quality of architecture and decorations caught the attention of French scholars only from its discovery.