The citadel of the cells. In the ruin and confusion of
Banteay Kdei the carvings take one's interest. They are piquant, exquisite, not
too frequent... they seem meant.. to make adorable a human habitation.
Banteay Kdei is located south of Ta Prohm. A enter the
monument from the west and leave at the west or vice versa, either way, also
visit Srah Srang.
It was built in middle of the 12th century to the beginning
of the 13th century by king Jayavarman II in Mahaya Buddhism with following at
least two different art periods Angkor Wat and Bayon are discernible at Banteay
Kdei.
BACKGROUND
Banteay Kdei has not been restored and allows the visitor to
experience what it may have looked like originally. Changes and additions
account for is unbalanced layout. Banteay Kdei was built of soft sandstone and
many of the galleries and porches have collapsed. The wall enclosing the temple
was built of reused stones.
LAYOUT
The temple is built on the ground level use as a Buddhist
monastery. The elements of the original design of Banteay Kdei seem to have
been a Central Sanctuary, a surrounding gallery and a passageway connected to
another gallery. A moat enclosed the original features of the temple. Another
enclosure and two libraries were among the additions in the Bayon period. The
outer enclosure (700 by 500 meters 2,297 by 1,640feet) is made of laterite and
has four entry towers.
A rectangular courtyard to the east is known as 'the hall of
the dancing girls', a name derived from the decoration which includes dancers
The entry tower of the second enclosure (3) is in the shape
of a cross with three passages; the two on either end are connected to the
literate wall of the enclosure (4) 320 by 200 scrolls of figures and large
female divinities in niches. In the interior court there is a frieze of Buddha.
A causeway of a later date, bordered with serpents, leads to
the entry tower of the third enclosure. It comprises a laetrile wall includes a
gallery with a double row of sandstone pillars that open onto a courtyard. Tip
Parts of this area have been walled in and passage is limited.
Vestiges of the wooden ceiling can still be seen in the
central Sanctuary. The galleries and halls, which join it in a cross to the
four entry towers, are probably additions. Two libraries open to the west in
the courtyards on the left and right of the causeway.
