On June 15, 1962, the International Court of Justice in The Hague ruled that the temple and surrounding land lay in Cambodia territory and that any antiquities such as sculptures that Thailand had removed from the temple must be returned. On July 7, 2008, the temple was listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Preah Vihear Temple has the most spectacular setting of all the Khmer temples built in the 6-centuries-long Khmer empire. It is a key edifice of the empire's spiritual life. It is unusually constructed along a long north-south axis rather than the conventional rectangular plan with orientation toward the east.
Construction of the temple began in the early 9th century. It was added to from to time as evidenced by the variety of styles. But most of the temple was constructed during the reigns of Khmer kings Suryavarman I (1002-1050) and Suryavarman II (1113-1150).
Shortly after 1904 when the French colonials took an interest in IndoChine and in their attempt to demarcate the borders of their IndoChine territories, the French discovered Preah Vihear Temple and drew their map with the Cambodian border north of the temple.
The temple runs 2600 feet along a north-south axis consisting of a causeway and stone staircases leading up the hill towards the sanctuary which sits at the southern end of the complex 390 feet higher than the northern end. it is 1720 feet above the Cambodian plain and 2050 feet above sea level.One of the masterpieces of Preah Vihear Temple is the large bas relief panel in stone depicting The Churning of the Ocean of Milk (pictured below), the Hindu creation myth and one of the most famous episodes in the Puranas. This same bas relief is also found at Angkor Wat.
Posts
From where did this hindu king/concept came during 9th century. only cholas of south india(TamilNadu) invaded cambodia and ruled there at that time.
ReplyDelete