PHNOM PENH – Archeologists have unearthed a centuries-old sandstone door guardian statue (Dvarapala) at the Banteay Prei temple in northwest Cambodia's Angkor archaeological park, the Apsara National Authority (ANA) said in a news release on Friday.
The ANA is the government agency responsible for managing, safeguarding and preserving the Angkor Archaeological Park, a UNESCO-listed world heritage site, situated in Siem Reap province.
"The statue was located to the east of the temple's second gate, buried under the ground approximately 80 centimeters," the news release said.
Chea Sarith, an archaeologist of the ANA's Department of Conservation of Monuments and Preventive Archaeology, said the statue appeared to have been dislodged due to the collapse of the gate's upper structure.
"Despite this, the statue remains in relatively good condition. However, it was found head down facing west, with the body broken into six pieces, including damage to the neck, forearm, left side, waist, and below the knees of both legs," he said. "A part of its stick is also missing."
He said the statue was built in the Bayon style and stood about 1.6 meters tall.
Banteay Prei is a rarely visited temple located near another small temple called Prasat Prei. The nearest major temple is Preah Khan. The Buddhist temple Banteay Prei was built in the Bayon style by King Jayavarman VII in the late 12th or early 13th century.
It is one of the temples in the 401-square-km Angkor archaeological park, which is the most popular tourist destination in the Southeast Asian country.
The Angkor park attracted a total of 584,375 international tourists during the January-July period of 2024, earning a gross revenue of about 27.2 million U.S. dollars from ticket sales, according to the state-owned Angkor Enterprise.
