Prasat Kravan
Siem Reap (Angkor archaeological area), Cambodia
- Deities
- Vishnu (including as Vamana/Trivikrama), Lakshmi
- Traditions
- vaishnava
- Worship status
- heritage
- Coordinates
- 13.41972, 103.89972
- Best time to visit
- November to February (cooler, dry season) for visiting the Angkor archaeological area generally.
- How to reach
- South of the Srah Srang baray within the Angkor archaeological park near Siem Reap, Cambodia; reachable by car or tuk-tuk as part of a wider tour of the Angkor complex.
Location
Open in Google MapsPrasat Kravan, completed in 921 CE at Angkor near Siem Reap, is unusual among major Khmer monuments in having been commissioned not by a reigning king but by high court officials under Harshavarman I or Ishanavarman II. Its five reddish brick towers, set on a common terrace south of the Srah Srang baray, are dedicated to Vishnu and are best known for large interior brick bas-reliefs — a technique rare among surviving Khmer monuments — depicting the god in several forms, including a four-armed Vishnu taking a great step, illustrating his Vamana (dwarf) avatar and the Trivikrama episode in which he strides across the universe in three steps, alongside reliefs of the goddess Lakshmi.
The temple underwent restoration in stages: vegetation clearance in the 1930s, followed by more substantial tower reconstruction between 1962 and 1966 under archaeologist Bernard Philippe Groslier, with replacement bricks distinctly marked “CA” for Conservation Angkor to distinguish them from the original 10th-century fabric. Today it functions as an archaeological and heritage site within the wider Angkor complex rather than an active place of worship.
Sources
- historical record: Cross-checked against Wikipedia's account of Prasat Kravan during this research pass: confirms the temple was dedicated to Vishnu and completed in 921 CE, built by high officials under King Harshavarman I or Ishanavarman II rather than by a reigning king directly; confirms it comprises five reddish brick towers on a common terrace, south of the Srah Srang baray at Angkor; confirms large brick bas-relief carvings inside depicting a four-armed Vishnu taking a large step, illustrating his incarnation as Vamana the dwarf (the Trivikrama episode), alongside reliefs of Vishnu and Lakshmi, a sculptural style described as rare among known Khmer monuments; confirms restoration work in the 1930s (vegetation clearance) and 1962-1966 (tower reconstruction under Bernard Philippe Groslier's initiative, with restoration bricks marked 'CA' for Conservation Angkor); infobox coordinates given as 13.41972°N 103.89972°E.
For review
- Like Angkor Wat, Banteay Srei, Preah Vihear Temple, Phnom Bakheng, and Bakong, already documented in this directory, Prasat Kravan functions today as an archaeological and heritage site rather than an active place of Hindu worship; it is included here for its documented Vaishnava dedication and its rare, well-preserved brick bas-reliefs depicting Vishnu's Vamana/Trivikrama avatar, a distinctive addition to this directory's coverage of unusual Vishnu-avatar iconography.