Architecture of The Bayon Temple At Angkor Thom, Angkor

The key points about the Bayon Temple are as follows;

• The Bayon faces east inside enclosures on an east to west axis.
• The Bayon is positioned in the exact center of Angkor Thom.
• The Bayon has no walls or moats close to it as its walls and moats are those of the total Angkor Thom complex comprising a total area of 9 square kilometers.
• The Bayon has three levels, the Outer Gallery on the ground, the Inner Gallery on the first level and the Upper Terrace. These are often referred to as the Third enclosure, the Second enclosure and the First enclosure [ referring from the top down to the ground ].

The Outer Gallery at the Bayon is covered in bas relief murals.

• These are of contemporary times in the 13th century and show much about dress, war fare, international groups, art and clothing, etc.
• One should purchase a detailed guide for details of these works and where to find them, but the following is an introduction about the murals... read more here;

The Inner Gallery at Bayon Temple is between the Outer Gallery on ground level and the Upper Gallery which houses the ''Faces''.

• It is one level up above the ground. Here one can see the bas reliefs added during the subsequent time of Jayavaraman VIII who sought to replace Buddhism with the former religion, Hinduism... read more here;

The top of the Bayon Temple comprises the Upper Bayon Terrace and the numerous ''face'' towers of the Bayon.

• Each of these towers has two, three and sometimes four faces. These faces are all similar and have the same serene smile looking down. Hence the name '' Lokesvara ''. ...read more here;