Where the jungle won
Ta Prohm was dedicated in 1186 by Jayavarman VII to his mother. A stone inscription records that the monastery once had more than 12,000 residents and around 80,000 villagers supporting it.
When French archaeologists began restoring Angkor, they chose to leave Ta Prohm largely in its “natural” state as an example of how the forest had swallowed the temples. Today it is carefully stabilised, with wooden walkways that protect the roots and the stones.
The famous trees
The two trees you will see most often are the silk-cotton tree (Tetrameles nudiflora), with smooth grey roots that pour over the walls like wax, and the strangler fig, which grips stones in a net of thinner roots. San knows every famous tree and the angles that avoid the queue of selfie-takers.
Tomb Raider and the “dinosaur”
Scenes from Lara Croft: Tomb Raider (2001) were filmed here. San will also show you the small round carving that some people say looks like a stegosaurus, and explain what it most likely is.
San’s tip
“Enter from the east side, not the west where the buses stop. You walk against the crowd and get the corridors to yourself.”
