Banteay Samre Temple
Angkor Wat-style sandstone temple encircled by galleries, guarded by lions along a naga-lined walkway.
This guide to Banteay Samre temple near Siem Reap opens with a folk tale about a farmer famous for the sweetest cucumbers in the kingdom, ordered by his king to guard the patch and kill any thief on sight, and the king's own habit of sneaking out at night for another taste. The temple itself dates to the twelfth century, raised under Suryavarman the Second in the same sandstone style as Angkor Wat, with galleries and a naga-lined walkway guarded by stone lions. Look up at the carved pediments over the doorways, numbered and reset by French archaeologists in the nineteen-thirties after decades buried in jungle.
Audio guides are written and narrated by AI.