Built in 1373, Wat Phnom is the legendary founding place of Phnom Pehn. It is an artificial hill (27 meters high) perched by a large stupa located near the Tonle Sap River in the northeast section of the city. The large stupa contains the ashes of King Ponhea Yat (1405-1406) who moved the Khmer capital from Angkor to Phnom Pehn in 1422.
Between the large stupa and the the vihear is the altar of Lady Pehn. Legend says that a wealthy widow named Daun (Grandmother or Lady) Pehn fished a large koki tree out of the river. She hoped to use it but found inside the tree four bronze statues of Buddha. She built a hill (phnom) and a small temple (wat) of what is now the site of Wat Phnom. Later, the surrounding area became known after the hill (Phnom) and its creator (Pehn), hence the city Phnom Penh.
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