Bayon

Bayon
Jaygiri
Religion
Affiliation	Buddhism, Hinduism
Deity	Avalokiteshvara, Hevajra (Jayagiri)
Location
Location	Angkor Thom
Country	Cambodia
Location in Cambodia
Geographic coordinates	13°26′28″N 103°51′31″E / 13.44111°N 103.85861°E / 13.44111; 103.85861
Architecture
Type	Bayon
Creator	Jayavarman VII
Completed	end of the 12th century CE

The Bayon (Khmer: ប្រាសាទបាយ័ន, Prasat Bayoăn [praːsaːt baːjŏən]) is a richly decorated Khmer temple related to Buddhism at Angkor in Cambodia. Built in the late 12th or early 13th century as the state temple of the King Jayavarman VII (Khmer: ព្រះបាទជ័យវរ្ម័នទី ៧), the Bayon stands at the centre of Jayavarman's capital, Angkor Thom (Khmer: អង្គរធំ).^[1][2]

The Bayon's most distinctive feature is the multitude of serene and smiling stone faces of The Buddha - probably modeled on the face of King Jayavarman VII - on every side the many towers that jut out from the upper terrace and cluster around its central peak.^[3] The main conservatory body, the Japanese Government Team for the Safeguarding of Angkor (the JSA) has described the temple as "the most striking expression of the baroque style" of Khmer architecture, as contrasted with the classical style of Angkor Wat (Khmer: ប្រាសាទអង្គរវត្ត).^[4]