Bakong Temple : one of the earliest in Angkor

Bakong Temple, Rolous Group

The Bakong temple is the Roulos Group, about 13-14 km from Siem Reap, and is generally covered as part of the day trip of Bantaey Srei (about 30 km away) and the group of temples called Rolous. These temples are the Bakong, Lolei,and Preah Ko and Prasat Prei Monti.

The Bakong is actually  one of the earliest temples made by the Khmer empire, about 1600 years ago (apparently the first temple ever made was Preah Ko, which is also visited as part of this tour).

Bakong temple is a “stepped pyramid” (see picture), and was the state temple of the city of Hariharalaya, established by the first king of Angkor, Jayavarman II. But later the capital of the empire moved to Angkor, leaving this site on the sidelines but not entirely abandoned. 

The temple is a nice, quiet place (when we visited, we were the only people there).This temple was also reconstructed using anastylosis method (as was done in The Baphuon as well, in Angkor Thom).  Don’t miss the lions that guard the entry, and the huge trees around the moat. Climb to the first level ( the stairs are a bit steep, as usual), and check out the elephants and lions at the corners.

The key aspect is the top spire looks like the Angkor temples, while the rest of the temple is a different style. The access road goes almost till the moat, making this temple one of the easier ones to visit by car.

The Rolous Group + Bantaey Srei is a very nice day trip from Siem Reap. The temples are clean and cleared, and its worth just wandering around in the silence and ever-advancing jungle, knowing that its ready to reclaim everything given the chance! These temples are also part of the three day ticket for US$67 per head.