Mangalartha / Monument 487, Angkor
Prasat Top, Minor Ruins of Ancient Angkor, Cambodia
The sight is located within Angkor. To prepare for your visit, read the AsiaExplorers Angkor Travel Guide for useful information. Visitors to Angkor stay at the town of Siem Reap. If you are looking for budget accommodation in Siem Reap, use the Cambodia Budget Accommodation Guide to find a place to stay.
Built in the late 13th century
by King Jayavarman VIII
Mangalartha, also called Prasat Top (East) and Monument 487, is one of the least significant ruin in Angkor. It is unlikely to be of any interest to visitors, hence if you choose to visit it, you are sure to be a hardcore Angkor enthusiast. It is the last known monument from the Angkor period, and was built by a Brahmin called Jayamangalartha, who was son of one of the gurus to Jayavarman VII.
The ruins of Mangalartha
Mangalartha is located in Angkor Thom. I had some difficulty in located it, but was determined not to have any ruin "get away". On the road between the Royal Palace and the Victory Gate, stop about 300 m before the gate. Look for a jungle path on the right side of the road. Unlike you visit during the dry months, the ruin is likely to be overgrown with vegetation.
Broken pediments and pieces of the temple lie scattered on the ground. Look for the carvings of a reclining Vishnu, as well as the Three Steps of Vishnu, where the deity is shown to step over the ocean.
How to go to Mangalartha
Mangalartha is not easy to find. Follow the directions I have provided in the above paragraph. Your tuk tuk driver is unlikely to have gone there. Anyway insist on looking for the jungle path about 300 m west of the Victory Gate.
Forest path from roadside towards Mangalartha.
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Siem Reap Travel Guide
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