Explore
Neak Pean's core features a large central pool and a circular island shrine. Pilgrims once came here for spiritual and physical healing.
King Jayavarman VII built this complex in the late 12th century as a symbolic hospital. The layout replicates the mythical Himalayan Lake Anavatapta. Visitors view the structures from platforms built around the edge of the water.
15 minutesPerimeter access only
A 70-meter (230-foot) square pool surrounds a 14-meter circular stone island. A Buddhist shrine crowns the island's seven-tiered laterite base. You cannot walk onto the island itself. Instead, view and photograph the ruins from the perimeter platforms.
5 minutesLook for the naga heads
Two large stone nagas, Nanda and Upananda, encircle the base of the island. Their intertwined tails give Neak Pean its name, which translates to "The Entwined Serpents." Look closely at the eastern entrance of the central shrine to spot their sculpted heads.
