Within the Prambanan Park, 800 metres north of the Hindu Prambanan temples is the Candi Sewu Complex and is the second largest Buddhist temple in Java, Borobudur bring the largest.

The name Candi Sewu means 1000 temples, which links it to the legend of Loro Djonggrang. In fact this complex has 253 building structures.

Candi Sewu predates the Prambanan Hindu temple complex (often referred to as the Loro Djonggrang complex), it was most likely originally built in the 8th Century by Rakai Panangkaran, of the Mataram Dynasty, and then expanded by Rakai Pikatan, a prince of the Sanjaya Dynasty who married a Buddhist princess from the Saliendra Dynasty. The Saliendras built Borobudur.

The proximity of the Candi Sewu complex to the Hindu complex suggests that the two religions co-existed harmoniously. The Candi Sewu temple complex was most likely used for royal ceremonies and rituals.

The rectangular grounds measure 185m by 165m, placed in the traditional mandala pattern around a central temple.

Additionally four ‘vanguard’ temples were placed in the compass positions at around 300m from the central rectangle. One of these remains, and is called Candi Bubrah, and is located between Prambanan’s Hindu complex and Candi Sewu. Bubrah means broken, as it has been in a state of ruins for many years.

Candi Lumbung is a Buddhist temple built around 850AD by the Mataram Dynasty, which consists of a single central temple surrounded by 16 smaller temples. The temples house niches and altars for carved imagery. In all, the temple complex was built to house over 120 images. Female deities grace the exterior of the central temple.