Thursday, October 27, 2011

Banteay Chhmar

A major effort is underway, led by the Cambodian government and the Global Heritage Fund, to stabilize and protect the palace/temple complex of Banteay Chhmar in northwest Cambodia and open it to tourism. The complex resembles the famous Angkor Thom and was actually built at the same time (ca. AD 1200), which makes me wonder where the Khmer kings found the money and the manpower for all that construction.

The jungle has overrun the site, which is wonderfully picturesque but not very good for the surviving stonework.

The remote location of the site has left it vulnerable to looting, including the theft of a 30m-long stretch of relief carving.

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