Restoration of Bayon temple's platform in Cambodia's famed Angkor park completed

PHNOM PENH (Xinhua): The restoration work on the southwest platform of Bayon temple's third terrace in Cambodia's famed Angkor Archaeological Park has been completed, the APSARA National Authority (ANA) said in a news release on Monday.

Meng Sovanlylin, an architect and manager of the restoration site, said the project had prepared ridge stones back to their original locations, compacted the soil foundation of the ancient drainage system, and restored the 12-meter-long Naga balustrade.

"This restoration work started at the beginning of 2023 and has been completed, with only a small amount of work left, such as cleaning new stones and grouting the stone connection," she said.

Sovanlylin said the southwest platform of Bayon temple's third terrace was previously badly damaged because tree roots grew into the structure, causing some stones to move from their original locations and making waters seep into stone holes.

As a result, there were sand leaks that caused some parts of the structure collapsed, she added.

Built during the reign of Jayavarman VII in the late 12th century and early 13th century, Bayon is one of the key temples in the 401-square-km Angkor Archaeological Park in northwest Siem Reap province.

The Angkor Archaeological Park, which was inscribed on the World Heritage List of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) in 1992, is the most popular tourist destination in the Southeast Asian nation. - XInhua