PREAH KO TEMPLE

PREAH KO TEMPLE (The sacred bull)
- Clearance : George Trouve in 1932.
 - Location : between Bakong and Lolei temples. It is midway between Bakong and the road.
 - Access : enter and leave the temple from the east.
 - Date : late 9th century (879).
 - King : Indravarman 1st (Isavaraloka).
 - Religion : Hinduism (dedicated to Siva), memorial temple built for the King’s parents and material grandparents, paternal grandparents, and king Jayavarman II (Paramesvara) and his wife.
 - Art-style : Preah Ko Temple.
 - Posthumous name: Icvaraloka.
 1. LAY-OUT
The name of this monument called “Preah Ko”, (the sacred bull), the vehicle of god Siva to whom the temple was dedicated. The temple was built of brick dating from the late 9th century in the year 879 dedicated to god Siva and the memory of the king’s predecessors. The temple consists a group of 6 brick towers stood on a common low platform and arranged into 2 rows, the front row and the back row; which opened to the east side (sunrise), and other three sides are false-door of sandstone. There are 3 walls enclose the temple with 2 gates (east and west). The first wall was made of laterite which is in poor conditioned state with only vestiges remaining. The first outer wall is (400 meters wide by 500 meters long), with square entry towers on the east and west and surrounded by a man-made ditch, which is usually with water, but it has plenty of aquatic plants such as are duck, weed, water hyacinth; however, it’s useful fro the villages to irrigate their daily life plants. The second wall was made of laterite too, which is (53 meters wide by 58 meters long), with 2 entry towers are in the shape of across, but the east entry gate stood on across-shaped laterite terrace, as we notice that, there is a remain of moonstone is note-worthy for its grateful form. In the courtyard of the wall we can see the bases of the 2 galleries, which run parallel to the east wall. On each of the causeway, and closer to it are 2 more galleries with a porch opening to the east (mostly ruined). Close to and parallel to the north wall and south wall of the enclosure, are 2 long halls for the pilgrims. Between the long hall and the gallery on the left is a square brick building. It may have been used as a place for the priests meditating. It is distinguished by rows of holes perhaps fro ventilation and a row of figures of ascetics in niches above the holes on the upper portion of the building. It formerly had a porch opening to the west direction. Continuing along the causeway, we can see a brick wall which has 2 entry towers one on the east and another one on the west. The third wall is (26 meters wide by 29 meters long) made of brick, which enclosed the main area. In the courtyard there are the remains of the 3 crouching sacred bulls aligned in a row.
 2. CENTRAL AREA
The base of the 6 bricks towers has 3 stairways along the eastern side. Sandstone lions on the both sides of the stairways guard the temple. The only stairway is on the west side. All 6 brick towers are square and opened to the east and other three sides are false-door. The towers are arranged into 2 rows are bigger that the 3 in the back. The 3 towers in the front row are fro the paternal ancestors with the male guardians flanking the doorways, the 3 towers in the back row are for material ancestors, and have the female divinities flanking the doorways. The names of the ancestors of the king Indravarman 1 as follow: - Sri-rudre-svara (maternal grand-father), “north tower in the front row.
 - Sri-rudre-devi (maternal grand-mother), north tower in the back row, (husband and wife).
 - Sri-paramesvara or Jayavarma II the middle tower in the front row.
 - Sri-dharanindradevi the middle tower in the back row, (husband and wife).
- Sri-ridtevindresvara (father), south tower in the front row.
 - Sri-ridtevindradevi (mother), south tower in the back row, (husband and wife).
 Well! The heavy coating of stucco covered the towers, which are still remaining today. The towers were made of brick, but the lintels, columns made of sandstone. The columns are octagonal. The lintel above the door of the tower in the front row on the right is decorated with small horsemen and figures mounted on serpents. Another lintel on the false-door of the middle tower of the back row on the west side has a Garuda in the center, surmounted by a row of small heads. The decorations of the 3 brick towers in the front row are decorated with the 3 in the back row because the 3 towers in the back row are of female figures of stucco. The decoration of Preah Ko is nearly the same decoration of (Sambor-Preikuk). Preah Ko was built under the reign of the king Indravarman 1, after king Jayavarman 2 had moved the capital from Kulen Mountain (Sivapada).