Built around 1190AD during the reign of the powerful King Jayavarman VII, Bayon stood at the symbolic heart of Angkor Thom, the ancient capital of the Khmer Empire. From a distance, the temple may appear as little more than a chaotic pile of stone, but step closer and it transforms into a breathtaking showcase of Khmer "baroque" architecture.

The great city of Angkor Thom isn’t just a ruin, it’s a palimpsest of power, religion, blood and time. It’s where Hindu deities once danced with Buddhist ideals and where a king tried to become a god in the eyes of the world. Carved into the Cambodian jungle in 1181AD by the empire’s most ambitious rule King Jayavarman VII, this immense stone citadel rose as the crowning capital of the ancient Khmer Empire.