Drought exposes Angkorian temple site

Wed, 25 May 2016 ppp

Brent Crane

Ancient Angkorian ruins previously hidden underwater have been exposed in a drying reservoir in a Thai village near the Cambodian border, the Bangkok Post reported yesterday.

The temple ruins, known by villagers as Tapieng Roun, are in Pattana village, Surin province, just north of Oddar Meanchey province in Cambodia, reported the newspaper. Surin province was historically part of the Angkorian empire and Angkorian ruins are common there.

Images of the site appear to show structures poking out from a shallow pool of water. Thailand, like the rest of the region, has been experiencing a crippling drought that scientists say is caused by a particularly powerful El Niño system.

The ruins are not a new finding, said Im Sokrithy, a senior archaeologist with the APSARA Authority in Siem Reap. The ruins, which he said are believed to be two temples representing a man and a woman, had previously been recorded by the Thai Ministry of Culture, he said.

Over the years, artefacts have disappeared from the Tapieng Roun site, likely taken by looters, the Bangkok Post reported.