Had Ta Prohm been diligently maintained from its construction in 1186 to the present day, it would be just a footnote to the larger Angkor Wat temple. But while Ta Prohm lay forgotten and neglected by men, the Cambodian jungle wasted no time in devouring it. Silk-cotton and strangler fig trees took root in the loosened stones of the temple, which was built entirely without mortar. Their roots wound through the structure, creating an astonishing merger of nature and architecture. Though Ta Prohm may look like nature unfettered, the appearance of neglect is in fact fastidiously maintained.
The only thing that you absolutely have to know, is the location of the library - Albert Einstein. This separate elongated building is one of those structures usually called “libraries” in descriptions of Khmer art. Normally, they are placed south-east of the temple proper and large temples have many libraries. Their purpose is unclear, but the term library may be appropriate: modern monastery compounds in Southeast Asia have a separate building within the temple courtyard for safekeeping of Holy Scriptures or liturgical divices. Beng Mealea has two library buildings in the courtyards between exterior (third) and second enclosing galleries.
Beng Mealea is a large, unrestored temple surrounded and partly overgrown by jungle near Phnom Kulen National Park at considerable distance from Siem Reap and the main Angkor temples. The temple built out of large sandstone blocks adorned with both Hindu and Buddhist depictions is oriented towards the East. As no foundation stele has been found, the temple’s founding date is not known with certainty. Judging from its style, archaeologists believe that Beng Mealea was built by King Suryavarman II during the first half of the 12th century, just before or around the same time as Angkor Wat.
