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PREAH KHAN TEMPLE

Conserving and presenting the remains of Preah Khan temple in its jungle setting

PREAH KHAN TEMPLE
Angkor Archaeological Park, Siem Reap, Cambodia
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WMF's work in conserving the monumental remains of the large monastic temple of Preah Khan at Angkor in Cambodia represents one of the longest standing heritage protection commitments of the organization. The site was identified as a potential project in 1989 and planning and physical intervention commenced in 1991. WMF's work at conserving and presenting Preah Khan continues today. As one of the first foreign organizations to work again at Ankgor after Cambodia's devastating civil war in the 1970's, WMF's chief aims at Preah Khan have included improving site access and safety for visitors to the site, making the site more intelligible, and helping to train a new generation of Khmer architects, engineers and archaeologists.

Preah Khan is an outstanding example of an Angkorian ‘linear temple' complex that dates from 1191. It was built by the Jayavarman VII, ‘the builder king', who was one of the most powerful and accomplished of all ancient Khmer rulers. The complex is defined by an outer moat within which are four walled enclosures. Within its inner walled enclosures is a vast array of temples, shrines, courtyards, and corridors at the center of which is the temple's sanctum sanctorum. Located at the north edge of the present Angkor Archaeological Park, Preah Khan is accessed by four causeways that permit approaches to the site from all four cardinal points. Only three of these access points which are marked by tripartite towered gopuras are in service today as public entry points. The overall site of Preah Khan measures 800 x 700 meters and occupies 56 hectares (138 acres). Approximately half of the complex served as former residential precincts that are covered today in dense vegetation. As such the site is framed in a jungle setting and beneath a canopy of trees.

Key architectural and artistic features of Preah Khan include its: causeway entrances to the site that are lined on opposite sides with giant carved stone gods (asuras) and demons holding the bodies of nagas (serpents) in a symbolic tug of war; the outer perimeter wall which is adorned with seventy-four 3.5 meter high carved stone garudas (man-birds clasping a pair of nagas); the site's extensive array of shrines mainly organized along its east-west and north-south axial ways that reflect the syncretic religious beliefs practiced of the monastery; a highly unusual, if not unique, two-story pavilion that may have contained the preah khan (sacred sword); and the roofless remains of a magnificent cruciform structure referred to as the Hall of Dancers. Along the primary east entrance way to the site lies Preah Khan's Dharmasala, which was thought to have housed the site's sacred flame.

An array of sculpture at building frontons (gables), engaged pilasters at openings, free standing sculpture, and carved wall decoration can be noticed throughout Preah Khan. Scant remains of wall finishes including painted stucco and bronze plating may also be noticed. Preah Khan's famous dedicatory stele that describes the place, its purpose and lists its many material possessions, including a population of nearly 100,000 that included 1,000 dancers stood at the west entrance of the site's central towered sanctum sanctorum until it was removed for safekeeping to conservation facilities in nearby Siem Reap in 1995.

Over the past two decades WMF has orchestrated over 100 specific architectural conservation interventions at Preah Khan ranging from small to large. Passageways have been opened to improve visitor circulation, a number of unsafe conditions have been corrected, numerous structures have been stabilized, and the site's characteristic vegetation has been carefully managed and maintained. In 1995 the first visitor and interpretive center of any kind was erected along the west entrance way to Preah Khan, and in 2008 it was reconstructed and with its exhibitry improved to be both a meeting place and a learning center today.

Preah Khan has served as WMF's flagship conservation project at Angkor where scores of both Khmer and foreign conservationists have learned about Angkorian conservation techniques. WMF's work here served as the basis for the organization's additional conservation projects at Ta Som, Phnom Bakheng, and the Southeast intermediate gallery at Angkor Wat.

RELATED PUBLICATIONS

A number of technical reports from the early 1990s track WMF’s engagement with the important temple complex of Preah Khan in Angkor, Cambodia. WMF’s first organized international mission to Angkor occurred in December 1989. It was soon realized that Angkor was in need of emergency conservation measures for several of its temples, in addition to extensive training of replacement conservation personnel. A second mission followed in March 1991 with an expanded list of participants, jointly organized with Sophia University (Tokyo). The latter mission focused more closely on the temple complex of Preah Khan, and a pilot conservation project was launched, which primarily addressed the issues of site inventory and field training. These two missions resulted in the following preliminary technical reports:

A third mission took place in March 1992, when a conservation master plan was developed, as described in the following two reports. These discuss the rationale for the conservation of Preah Khan as an exposed archaeological and architectural ruin, to be stabilized in its largely “as found” condition:

Following the development of a conservation master plan, WMF developed a proposal for a sustained, internationally supported conservation project. The following document outlines WMF’s original plan for a team of international experts, Cambodian students, and local laborers to engage in a conservation and field training program:

Six field campaigns took place during each of the following six winters. WMF consultants participated in frequent field missions, while local laborers undertook continuous on-site work. These activities are chronicled in detail in the following annual technical reports.

The first field campaign took place in 1992-1993. During this six-month campaign various methodologies for conservation and project management were implemented on a trial basis. These trials led to the development of policies and procedures for architectural conservation at Preah Khan. Report IV, accompanied by several appendices, documents preliminary conservation work including site clearance, emergency structural stabilization, and the establishment of field facilities:

The second Preah Khan field campaign took place in 1993-1994. Conservation work was launched on various sites within the large temple complex. During this campaign, filming took place for a Discovery Channel program showcasing the international effort to preserve Angkor. Report V describes the conservation and documentation accomplishments of this campaign, as well as progress in the organization of the project in cooperation with the Cambodian government and international experts:

The third Preah Khan field campaign took place in 1994-1995. Conservation work undertaken during this campaign prioritized structural consolidation to prevent several pending structural failures and to make the site safe for visitors. Work was undertaken on the then-principal west entrance to the complex, the site’s east access way, and along the main east-west axial route leading to the central shrine. A fundraising program for the conservation of the stone garudas of Preah Khan’s outer fortified walls was also inaugurated, under the name “Adopt a Garuda.” At the request of WMF, a Spaceborn Imaging Radar survey of Angkor was undertaken by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) using the Space Shuttle Endeavour in October 1994. The third campaign and subsequent initiatives were further informed by data from this survey. Report VI describes the conservation work of the third field campaign and the continued international advocacy, education, and development efforts of WMF and its consultants:

The fourth Preah Khan field campaign took place in 1995-1996. At that time a number of ongoing conservation projects reached completion, while research and training activities were expanded. New techniques for stone repair were introduced by visiting experts and were tested in the field. A redoubled effort was also made to better organize the archive of architectural drawings and photographs of Preah Khan. The fourth field campaign is described in Report VII:

The fifth Preah Khan field campaign took place in 1996-1997. During this campaign innovative conservation techniques were perfected and a significant amount of new work was completed, as described in Report VIII. In addition, investigations along the western shore of the Jayatataka Baray (also known as the Northern or Preah Khan Baray) resulted in findings of archaeological importance. Report VIII also describes the effects on the project of a brief period of political instability in Cambodia during the summer of 1997, which affected the following field campaign as well:

The sixth Preah Khan field campaign took place in 1997-1998. Conservation work and archaeological investigations continued with success. This campaign marked the completion of a ten-year period of WMF’s continuous presence in Preah Khan. After that time, the project was scheduled to enter a phase of long-term maintenance.

In 2003 WMF published the following brochure describing in brief the decade-long project at Preah Khan. An article published in the Winter 2005/2006 issue of ICON Magazine chronicles the project, in the context of WMF’s work in Angkor, in greater detail:

For the years 2000 through 2010 updates on conservation interventions and maintenance measures at Preah Khan were reported in illustrated presentations at the annual meetings of the APSARA authority in Siem Reap.

In 2005, WMF began the process of transferring responsibility for Preah Khan to APSARA, which is responsible for all conservation in the archaeological park of Angkor.

In 2010 a publication of WMF’s 20 year history of conserving and presenting Preah Khan will be published by Scala Publishers (London).