Pre Rup

This Hindu temple located in Angkor was the state temple of Khmer King Rajendravarman. It is built in traditional temple mountain style and combines sandstone, laterite and brick for the construction purpose. The temple dates back to 10th century. Pre Rup means “turn the body” in local language and alludes to the Cambodian belief of carrying out funerals at the temple and the ashes to be rotated in different directions. Pre Rup is located south of the East Baray and is aligned on a north-south axis to the East Mebon temple. The temple complex is in a square layout fashion and is enclosed by two perimeter walls. Its four external gopuras come with a central brick section. The gopuras also have a sandstone vestibule on each side. The temple complex also features several long galleries, built in10th century style architecture.
The temple is dedicated to Hindu God Shiva and is likely built on the remains of a previous shivaite ashram. The deity carvings can be seen on a bas reliefs. The southwest tower is believed to have a statute of Lakshmi while northwest tower had a statue of Uma. Similarly, the northwest tower contained a statue of Shiva and the southeast tower had a statue of Vishnu.
You can also visit the libraries which are on either side of the east entry tower of the second enclosure. There is also a vat between two rows of sandstone pillars in the center. It is believed that the vat may have been a base for a statue of Nandi.