WAT EK OU EK PHNOM

An 11th century Brahman temple 14 km to the north, Wat Ek was also transformed into a prison during the Khmer Rouge period. Enclosed by a wide moat cut by two access roads to the east and west, it is surrounded by an elevated gallery, open on the inside and measuring 52 m, east-west by 49 m north-south, interrupted on the east and west by gopuras with three passages. Inside, two libraries open to the west. The sanctuary is built on a sandstone terrace. It comprises a nave, a forecourt and a cruciform cella with four openings surmounted by decorative lintels: to the east, the churning of the Sea of Milk, the mount is represented by a tree at the top of which Brahma is seated on a lotus, a four-armed Vishnu supports the trunk, and ten figures hold the coiled snake; to the west, a deity is mastering two monsters; to the north, the image of Shiva on the bull with Parvati; to the south, that of Shiva dancing. Etienne Aymonier, who has studied the temple in detail, states that the temple "still produces an impression on the visitor that can be compared to that given by a superb ship on a high ship. Wat Ek is infinitely better preserved than Baset, although these two temples appear to be more or less contemporary.

Its old preah vihear was destroyed a few years ago: some wooden elements remain in the Wat Poveal museum. It has been replaced by a much larger and more colorful preah vihear. To see the basin you have to continue the road westward. This basin is invaded by lotus and vegetation but in the rainy season it is clearly visible. As for the sanctuary, it is built on an enormous, approximately square base, 2 m high, about 26 m long and wide, which is climbed by steps on all four sides; the step on the eastern side has significantly wider steps and is more convenient for climbing. On this base which contributes to give the monument its pyramidal aspect, the sanctuary presents first of all a gallery 8 m long, 2,40 m wide, which is flanked by two lateral half-vaults allowing to compare it to a peristyle with four rows of columns. A narrower corridor connects the gallery to a tower with protruding and retracted angles that constitutes the sanctuary itself. The well-sculpted pediments, most of which lie on the ground, depicted the usual Brahmanic deities or scenes: the churning, Indra on the three-headed elephant, Shiva and Parvati riding the bull Nandin, etc.