On the "Big Circuit" for day two. A sun-blighted morning, but the canopy of monstrous ficus trees (Tetrameles nudiflora) keeps us cool as we enter the complex. For centuries, a center of theological study (Hindu or Buddhism depending on the whims of the age), Preah Khan has elegantly folded back into the jungle and the stones of the building are often buffeted, strangled, and supported by the twisting trunks and limbs of wizened plantlife.
Shaped in a cruciform, Preah Khan has two, tiny perpendicular corridors that converge in the center of the complex. After gingerly creeping through the enclosed spaces, a breather in the stone-littered courtyard is appreciated.
With institutionalized looting came the decapitation of stone relics. You have a better chance of finding Khmer headpieces in Paris or London.
At the Eastern Gate.
Captive dragonflies.
1 comment:
I think this is the best crop of pics from your Cambodia trip yet. I especially like the statue with all the hands (top of the page, under the dog). That new camera takes some good shots.
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