Neak Pean

Neak Pean

Neak Pean means the “Coiled Serpents Temple”. The temple is built of sandstone and laterite in late 12th century by King Jayavarman VII for the Buddhist religion.

In its period, this temple served as the hospital treating not only those with physical diseases but also those in need of spiritual treatment.

The plan layout of this temple is quite different from all the others; there are five ponds, a large one in the center, and four smaller ones at the corners connected to the large by small chambers. Each of the chambers have heads: elephant, human, lion, and horse hereby representing the four cosmologies, water, soil, fire, and wind.

In the center of the big pond there is an island surrounded by two serpents with entwined tails giving the name to the temple “the Coiled Serpents temple” (see the picture above). The mouths of the serpents are open for pilgrims. In front of and between the two serpents’ heads there is a horse with human legs. The legend of the horse is the same to for the five headed horse at the Terrace of the Elephants.