Entry No. 43 — the Providence file — filed under: buddhist-temple
Angkor Wat Replica at Wat Dhamagosnaram
In 2004 the congregation of Wat Dhamagosnaram, a Cambodian Buddhist temple on Plainfield Pike, commissioned craftsmen in Cambodia to hand-carve a miniature Angkor Wat in marble and jade, shipped the pieces to Cranston, and brought over a Cambodian tradesman just to build the foundation. The finished model — about three and a half feet tall, spread over some 260 square feet, ringed by a working moat stocked with goldfish — was the first Angkor Wat replica at any Buddhist temple in the United States. Its five central towers stand in for the peaks of Mount Meru, home of the gods, exactly as the originals do. Temple president Sarin Rath called the 2005 unveiling Angkor Wat officially arriving abroad, and it has sat in the front yard quietly astonishing passing traffic ever since.
→ Three more weird outdoor & roadside oddities in Providence — never the same twice
The story
Rhode Island holds the highest concentration of Cambodian Americans of any state — about half a percent of the population, some 5,176 people as of the 2010 census — a community assembled by refugees who arrived after the Khmer Rouge fell in 1979. Wat Dhamagosnaram is their temple, sitting on Plainfield Pike in western Cranston where the suburb thins out into woods and stone walls. In 2004 the congregation decided the grounds ought to include Angkor Wat.
They did not order a model. Craftsmen in Cambodia hand-carved the thing from marble and jade — statues, buildings, monuments, cut piece by piece — and the components were shipped to Rhode Island, where a Cambodian tradesman was brought over for the sole purpose of building the foundation correctly. What went up in the front yard stands about three and a half feet tall, spreads across roughly 260 square feet, and is ringed by a working moat stocked with goldfish. It was unveiled on July 30, 2005, the first Angkor Wat replica at any Buddhist temple in the United States. “Rhode Island has become the second home for Angkor Wat,” temple president Sarin Rath said.
The scale is comic. The geometry is not. The five central towers sit in the same quincunx as the originals, standing in for the five peaks of Mount Meru, home of the gods — the arrangement Suryavarman II’s builders settled on between 1113 and 1150. The moat is the same idea, shrunk from 190 meters wide to a step across. Angkor Wat has been on Cambodia’s national flag since 1863, which is roughly the point: this is a small marble argument that a country outlasts its worst decade, and can be reassembled — accurately, at whatever size is available — in a front yard on a Rhode Island state road.
What it's like
This is an active place of worship, not an attraction, and the replica sits in the front yard where anyone can see it: pull into the temple’s own lot off Plainfield Pike and walk over. No admission, no docent, nobody will approach you. Viewing is daylight hours only, and on an ordinary weekday you may have the whole thing to yourself; weekends and Cambodian holidays fill the lot and the grounds. Dress modestly, keep your voice down, don’t touch or climb the model. Take the lap around the moat slowly — the goldfish and the carving are the entire reason to drive out here, and it’s a ten-minute stop otherwise. If a service is underway, stay outside, stay quiet, and let it happen.
The move: Go an hour before sunset to beat the daylight-only rule: circle the moat, find the goldfish, count the five towers, then drive fifteen minutes back into Providence and land on Federal Hill for dinner — Angkor Wat and Atwells Avenue in one evening.
📍 Before you go Front-yard viewing only, daylight hours only. This is an active temple: dress modestly, keep voices down, and don't touch or climb the model. Park in the temple's own lot off Plainfield Pike. The name is spelled both Dhamagosnaram and Dhammagosnaram, so navigate by the street address rather than the name; the temple phone is (401) 942-2084.
- 📍 Cranston
- 💸 Free
- ⚡ Up for anything
- 🌗 Outdoors
Where: 2870 Plainfield Pike, Cranston, RI
Hours: Added 2026-08-25 — confirm current hours before you go.
⚠ Seasonal or scheduled — always check before you go.
Pair it with
- Governor Sprague Mansion — Cranston's other historical set piece, at the eastern end of the same town — a calico fortune, a 1843 murder and the state's last execution, which is about as far from a jade Mount Meru as one municipality can stretch.
- Botanica San Lazaro — Head back toward the city and end on lower Broad Street at a working Santería and folk-Catholic supply house: two immigrant communities in one county, both keeping the devotional objects stocked and in use.
- Seagrave Memorial Observatory — The replica is daylight-only, so let it be the sunset half of the evening and drive north into Scituate for the Skyscrapers' free Saturday-night eyepiece under the same dark western sky.
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Good to know
Where is it, and how do I actually find it?
2870 Plainfield Pike in Cranston, roughly fifteen miles west of downtown Providence. The temple name is spelled both Dhamagosnaram and Dhammagosnaram depending on the source, so navigate by the street address rather than the name. Park in the temple's own lot off Plainfield Pike.
What does it cost, and do I need to book anything?
Nothing, and no. Viewing is free, front-yard only, during daylight hours, with no ticket, tour, or reservation involved. The temple phone is (401) 942-2084 if you want to confirm before making the drive.
How big is it? Is it worth the trip?
About three and a half feet tall, spread over roughly 260 square feet, with a moat you could step over. The appeal isn't size — it's that every statue, building and monument was hand-carved from marble and jade in Cambodia and shipped here in pieces, and the detail rewards standing close for a while.
Can I go inside the temple itself?
The replica is outdoors and public-facing; the temple building is a working place of worship and not a visitor attraction. Don't assume access — call ahead if you want to ask, dress modestly either way, and keep to the front yard otherwise.
Does the season matter?
It's outdoors and unsheltered in a New England front yard, and access is daylight-only, so December leaves you a short window and snow cover flattens the detail. Late spring through fall, in the hour before sunset, is when the marble and jade read best.
Plan a visit & invite your people →
Further reading: quahog.org · web.archive.org
last checked: 2026-08-25