Candi Borobudur

Yogyakarta, Indonesia

The great Buddhist monument of Borobudur (760 - 830 AD) was built by the Sailendra dynasty near their capital of Yogyakarta in Central Java. Wrapped around an underlying hill like the frosting on a layer cake, the temple's reliefs and sculptures express a spiritual journey in stone, instructing and inspiring the monks and devotees who circumambulated its 1.2 km (.75 miles) of galleries as they made their way from the bottom to the top of the monument.

Restored in the 20th century, Borobudur is currently enrolled as a UNESCO World Heritage site.