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An 800m-long gallery of bas-reliefs which stretch all the way round the outside of the central complex of Angkor Wat, depicting a variety of epic events. We've tried to get the captions right - with help from the Lonely Planet - but some of these photos are hard to identify after the fact, so any corrections from experts are welcome!

27 photographs - click any one to see an enlargement (Please see the note on the home page about popup blockers).

Battle of Kurukshetra: a dead chief lying on a pile of arrows, surrounded by grieving relatives and troops
Battle of Kurukshetra: a dead chief lying on a pile...
Battle of Kurukshetra: a warrior on an elephant
Battle of Kurukshetra: a warrior on an elephant
Portico at SW corner, decorated with subjects from the Ramayana
Portico at SW corner, decorated with subjects from...
Detail from SW portico (we think!)
Detail from SW portico (we think!)
Army of Suryavarman II: Suryavarman II (?), shaded by umbrellas and fanned by servants
Army of Suryavarman II: Suryavarman II (?), shaded by...
Army of Suryavarman II: Suryavarman II on an elephant, shaded by 15 umbrellas and fanned by servants
Army of Suryavarman II: Suryavarman II on an elephant...
Army of Suryavarman II: a chief on an elephant among the foot-soldiers
Army of Suryavarman II: a chief on an elephant among...
Heaven and Hell: upper tier showing fine ladies and gentlemen proceeding towards Yama (see next picture but one)
Heaven and Hell: upper tier showing fine ladies and...
Heaven and Hell: lower tier showing the road to hell
Heaven and Hell: lower tier showing the road to hell
Heaven and Hell: 18-armed Yama (judge of the dead), seated on a bull
Heaven and Hell: 18-armed Yama (judge of the dead...
Heaven and Hell: a garuda (half man, half bird)
Heaven and Hell: a garuda (half man, half bird)
Heaven and Hell: the condemned in hell
Heaven and Hell: the condemned in hell
Heaven and Hell: more horrors being perpetrated on the condemned
Heaven and Hell: more horrors being perpetrated on...
Heaven and Hell: the condemned being flayed
Heaven and Hell: the condemned being flayed
Churning of the Ocean of Milk: asura (devils) holding the head of the serpent in a tug-of-war with the gods
Churning of the Ocean of Milk: asura (devils) holding...
Churning of the Ocean of Milk: apsara (angelic dancers) above the serpent
Churning of the Ocean of Milk: apsara (angelic...
Churning of the Ocean of Milk: deva (gods) holding the tail half of the serpent, with fish below
Churning of the Ocean of Milk: deva (gods) holding...
Churning of the Ocean of Milk: more deva with apsara above
Churning of the Ocean of Milk: more deva with apsara...
Churning of the Ocean of Milk: the serpent's tail
Churning of the Ocean of Milk: the serpent's tail
Churning of the Ocean of Milk: the serpent coiled round Mt Mandala at the centre of the sea, with Vishnu incarnated as a turtle
Churning of the Ocean of Milk: the serpent coiled...
Vishnu conquers the demons: we think this is one of the danava (demons), not Vishnu himself
Vishnu conquers the demons: we think this is one of...
Vishnu conquers the demons: the confusion of battle
Vishnu conquers the demons: the confusion of battle
Vishnu conquers the demons: Vishnu mounted on a garuda
Vishnu conquers the demons: Vishnu mounted on a garuda
Battle of the Gods and the Demons: one of the gods mounted on a rhinoceros (?)
Battle of the Gods and the Demons: one of the gods...
Battle of the Gods and the Demons: 4-armed Vishnu mounted on a garuda
Battle of the Gods and the Demons: 4-armed Vishnu...
Battle of Lanka: Rama's army of monkeys, battling...
Battle of Lanka: Rama's army of monkeys, battling...
Battle of Lanka: ...10-headed Ravana, seducer of Rama's wife Sita
Battle of Lanka: ...10-headed Ravana, seducer of Rama...

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