Prasat Suor Prat ( km, ប្រាសាទសួព្រ័ត) is a series of twelve towers spanning north to south lining the eastern side of a royal square in

Angkor Thom Angkor Thom ( km, អង្គរធំ ; meaning "Great City"), alternatively Nokor Thom ( km, នគរធំ ) located in present-day Cambodia, was the last and most enduring capital city of the Khmer empire, Khmer Empire. It was established in ...

, near the town of

Siem Reap Siem Reap ( km, សៀមរាប, ) is the second-largest city of Cambodia, as well as the capital and largest city of Siem Reap Province in northwestern Cambodia. Siem Reap has French colonial and Chinese-style architecture in the Old F ...

Cambodia Cambodia (; also Kampuchea ; km, កម្ពុជា, UNGEGN: ), officially the Kingdom of Cambodia, is a country located in the southern portion of the Indochinese Peninsula in Southeast Asia, spanning an area of , bordered by Thailand t ...

. The towers are made from rugged laterite and sandstone. They are right in front of

Terrace of the Elephants The Terrace of the Elephants ( km, ព្រះលានជល់ដំរី) is part of the walled city of Angkor Thom, a ruined temple complex in Cambodia. The terrace was used by Angkor's king Jayavarman VII as a platform from which to view ...

and

Terrace of the Leper King The Terrace of the Leper King (or Leper King Terrace) (, ''Preah Lean Sdach Kumlung'') is located in the northwest corner of the Royal Square of Angkor Thom, Cambodia. It was built in the Bayon style under Jayavarman VII, though its modern name d ...

, flanking the start of the road leading east to the Victory Gate, on either side of which they are symmetrically arranged. Their function remains unknown. The current tower's name in Khmer means "The towers of the tightrope dancers," a romantic idea derived from the local belief that they were used to support a high wire stretched between them for acrobatics during royal festivals. This belief, however, is irrelevant.

Zhou Daguan Zhou Daguan (; French: Tcheou Ta-Kouan; c. 1270–?) was a Chinese diplomat of the Yuan dynasty of China, serving under Temür Khan (Emperor Chengzong of Yuan). He is most well known for his accounts of the customs of Cambodia and the Angkor tem ...

describes in his records that the towers are used to settle disputes among Angkorian people. The temple was possibly built during the reign of

Indravarman II Indravarman II ( km, ឥន្ទ្រវរ្ម័នទី២) was the ruler of the Khmer Empire, son of Jayavarman VII.Higham, C., 2001, The Civilization of Angkor, London: Weidenfeld & Nicolson, There is some dispute regarding the actual ...

.Higham, C., 2001, The Civilization of Angkor, London: Weidenfeld & Nicolson, Among the twelve towers, the structures identified as N1 tower and N2 antechamber were in danger of collapse and were reconstructed in 2001-2005 by JSA (Japanese Government Team for Safeguarding of Angkor) and

APSARA An apsaras or apsara ( sa, अप्सरा ' lso ' pi, अक्चरा, translit=accharā) is a type of female spirit of the clouds and waters in Hinduism and Buddhist culture. They figure prominently in the sculpture, dance, literat ...

Gallery

File:Prasat Suor Prat 2014.JPG, File:Angkor SiemReap Cambodia Suor-Prat-Towers-02.jpg, File:Prasat Suor Prat, Angkor Thom, Camboya, 2013-08-16, DD 01.JPG File:Angkor Thom plaça central.jpg File:Prasat Suor Prat 5.jpg

References

Angkorian sites in Siem Reap Province {{Cambodia-struct-stub