Terrace of the Leper King, Angkor Thom

The statue of the Leper King.

 
The Terrace of the Leper King lies just north of the Terrace of the Elephants. The name comes from a statue that was found placed on top of the terrace, although there are different stories as to why this statue was thought to display leprosy. It's actually rather fine. The statue you see at the site is a replica. The original is the centerpiece of the National Museum in Phnom Penh.

Like the Terrace of the Elephants, the stone wall facing the open field is finely carved. There were in fact two walls to the terrace. The first was apparently too thin and collapsed, so a second wall was built in front of it. The old wall was uncovered during excavations, and now a false corridor has been built so you can see it as well as the replacement wall.

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