Jewel in the Crown of Angkor Art: Banteay Srei Midhun Banteay Srei goes by many nicknames such as “The Lady temple”, “The Tiny temple”, “The Pink temple”, arguably one of finest stone carving temple anywhere on earth. This temple is unique as it was constructed by using reddish coloured sandstone, dedicated to Hindu God Shiva, then called as ‘Tribhuvanamahesvara’. Khmer King Rajendravarman-II came to power at his young age in 944CE. One of his Guru, Yajnavaraha was granted permission to build a temple complex in a rural settlement located on the outskirts of the capital Yashodharapura. This settlement was later named as ‘Ishwarapura’, which literally means ‘The City of Ishwara’. It is said that the smaller size was deliberate, to focus more on aesthetic excellence. Due to the hardness of the stone used, this temple has retained sharpness and finishing, even after 1000+ years of exposure to natural erosion. The Walls, Archways, and Thoranas are enriched with intricate and miniature sculptures depicting scenes from the Great Hindu epics Mahabharatha and Ramayana. Excellent craftsmanship marks this well preserved temple as the acme of Hindu temple artwork. Place: Banteay Srei, 32km from Siem Reap city, Cambodia. Period: Consecration in the year 967 CE as per the inscriptions at the temple, patronised by Yajnavaraha, a courtier and guru of Kings Rajendravarman-II and Jayavarman-V. A TO Z INDIA ● MAY 2023 ● PAGE 22