Ta Keo had to be the state temple of Jayavarman V, son of Rajendravarman, who had built the Pre Rup. Like Pre Rup, it has five sanctuary towers arranged in a quincunx, built at the highest level of the five-level pyramid, consisting of overlapping terraces (a pyramid of steps), surrounded by moat, as a symbolic representation of Mount Meru. Its particularly massive appearance is due to the absence of external decorations, since the sculpture had just begun when the works stopped, [1] as well as an elaborate use of perspective effects. It is considered an example of the so-called Khleang style.

Ta Keo Plan

The main axis of the temple is E-W and a 500-meter long causeway connects its east entrance to a landing stage in the Eastern Baray, with which Ta Keo was in a strong relationship. The outer banks of the surrounding moats, now missing, measure 255 m by 195 m.

The first terrace is 122 m by 106 m, its laterite sandstone wall constitutes the outer casing. Along the east side, there are two long galleries whose roofs were probably in wood and tile. They were lit by balustrade windows.

The second terrace is 5.5 m higher. Each of the first two terraces has a gopura at the four cardinal points. Each gopura has three independent passages and a central tower with decreasing levels.

A continuous gallery (1.4 m wide) constitutes the internal enclosure of the second terrace. It has windows only towards the interior and measures 80 m by 75 m. It is really interesting because it has no door and appears to be purely decorative, and is the first example of the Khmer gallery (along with Phimeanakas). Before Ta Keo (for example, in the Pre Rup), there were long buildings that followed the length of the enclosures with some discontinuity. [4] However, it does not have a stone vault, probably its roof was made of wood and tiles as well.

Along the east side of the second terrace in the corners, there are two buildings that are the shorter version of the long galleries of the first terrace. Further toward the central axis [5], there are two small "libraries" of sandstone, which open to the west with false windows on the upper floors.

The final pyramid rises 14 m in three narrow steps from the second terrace. Its base is 60 m squared, the summit is 47 m squared and is 21.5 m above the ground. The four ladders that lead on the ridge are continuous and very steep. At the foot of the east, there is a statue of a Nandi kneeling, which confirms that Ta Keo was a Shivaite temple. The absence of any decoration makes the final pyramid very massive. However, on the eastern side some tiles damaged by floral patterns are still visible.

The four corner towers on the summit are in basements of 0.8 m high and open to the four cardinal points with prominent lobbies. In the central tower, which dominates the others of its basement of 4 meters of height, the vestibules are doubled. Fragments of lanyards and several statues were found in the chambers of the sanctuary (about 4 meters wide) and around the towers. The central tower reaches a height of 45 meters.

History

Jayavarman V was ten years old when he got his father, Rajendravarman, in 968. His early years of reign were quite turbulent and court officials dominated royal politics. When he was seventeen years old (in 975), he began construction of his own state temple, whose modern name is Ta Keo, which was dedicated some time around 1000. In contemporary inscriptions it is called Hemagiri or Hemasringagiri ("the mountain with gold summits "). [8] It remained unfinished until the reign of Suryavarman I. [9]: 135 Yogisvarapandita, a high priest who became minister of Suryavarman I and "received" his temple many years later, says in inscriptions that a lightning attack struck the unfinished building, an evil omen, then the works stopped. Perhaps the works stopped simply because of the death of Jayavarman V, as there was a struggle for succession. In fact, the temple worked continuously as a center of worship until the 13th century, [10] and even Yogisvarapandita worshiped the shrines in the first levels of the temple.

A term closely linked to Hemasringagiri is Jayendranagari (which in Sanskrit means "capital of the victorious king"), the royal palace or perhaps the new capital of Jayavarman V. [11]: 367 [12] However, the remains of this great joint hypothesis are very scarce. Today, only one tower in the southwest survives, similar to the corner towers of Ta Keo, with an unusual single door to the south.