Banteay Kdei

Prasat Banteay Kdei The Citadel of Chambers
Banteay Kdei, Angkor
Prasat Banteay Kdei The Citadel of Chambers Location in Cambodia
Name
Proper name	Prasat Banteay Kdei
Geography
Coordinates	13°25′47″N 103°53′54″E / 13.42972°N 103.89833°E / 13.42972; 103.89833Coordinates: 13°25′47″N 103°53′54″E / 13.42972°N 103.89833°E / 13.42972; 103.89833
Country	Cambodia
Province	Siem Reap
District	Siem Reap
Locale	Angkor
Culture
Primary deity	Avalokitesvara, Buddhist Temple
Architecture
Architectural styles	Bayan and Angkor architecture
Number of monuments	Several
History and governance
Date built	12th to 13th centuries
Creator	Jayavarman VII

Banteay Kdei (Khmer: ប្រាសាទបន្ទាយក្តី; Prasat Banteay Kdei), meaning "A Citadel of Chambers", also known as "Citadel of Monks' cells", is a Buddhist temple in Angkor, Cambodia. It is located southeast of Ta Prohm and east of Angkor Thom. Built in the mid-12th to early 13th centuries AD during the reign of Jayavarman VII (who was posthumously given the title "Maha paramasangata pada"), it is in the Bayon architectural style, similar in plan to Ta Prohm and Preah Khan, but less complex and smaller. Its structures are contained within two successive enclosure walls, and consist of two concentric galleries from which emerge towers, preceded to the east by a cloister.

This Buddhist monastic complex is currently dilapidated due to faulty construction and poor quality of sandstone used in its buildings, and is now undergoing renovation. Banteay Kdei had been occupied by monks at various intervals over the centuries until the 1960s.

The Banteay Kdei, one of the many Angkor temples, is located in the Angkor Archaeological Park of 400 square kilometres (150 sq mi) area. The ancient city of Angkor during the Khmer Empire extended from Tonle Sap to the Kulen hills covering a vast area of 1,000 square kilometres (390 sq mi). The temple is approached from the east gopura of Ta Prohm along a 600 metres (2,000 ft) path. This path leads to the west gate entrance gopura of Banteay Kdei. It is 3 kilometres (1.9 mi) east of Angkor Thom.

The name Banteay Kdei originates from an earlier name, Kuti, which is mentioned in the Sdok Kak Thom. This stele describes the arrival of Jayavarman II to the area, "When they arrived at the eastern district, the king bestowed an estate and a village called Kuti upon the family of the royal chaplain." This royal chaplain was the Brahman scholar Sivakaivalya, his chief priest for the Devaraja cult.