“Fieldwork” in Cambodia 2011

I’ve been slow to post but things have been pretty busy here for the past few weeks.  The excavation project I came here to work on did not get their permissions to excavate in time, so we’ve been busy doing other work– including looking at a lot of sites that may be ideal for future research.  I’m hopeful that I’ll be back to work on an excavation here early next year.  In the meantime, here are quite a few photos of places I’ve visited over the past few weeks (after the jump).

Above: Passing a wooden cart on the road, being pulled by water buffalo.

Below: It’s the rainy season so visiting sites sometimes means crossing through watery fields and moats

 Below: Wat Atthvea. One of our team members wrote his BA thesis on this temple so we were lucky to get some inside details.

Below: Several of the stones at Wat Atthvea have this strange graffiti on them.  It is unclear what it means, but may have something to do with the construction of the temple.

Below: Finished and unfinished Apsaras at Wat Atthvea

Below: Chau Srei Vibol is a crumbling temple complex top of a small hill. Only part of the site (the part you’d want to see) has been demined. The forested area around it is still off-limits.

Below: Another interesting aspect about Chau Srei Vibol is that there is a more recent Vihear right in front (foreground).

Below: Banteay Thom is a small Jayavarman VII temple off the beaten path.

Below: Banteay Thom has the “lost temple in the jungle” feel that Ta Prohm once had

Below: It also has a lovely inscription, this one is naming the Buddha found in the sanctuary.

We took a quick tour of Ta Prohm, which is currently being restored in a joint  project between the Archaeological Survey of India and the Apsara Authority

Below: There are now wooden walkways directing tourists around the site, and hoards of tourists too.

Below:Trapeang Pong is a great brick temple in the middle of some rice fields.  To get there required another walk through a watery moat. You can see the top of the temple through the trees.

Below: The temple of Trapeang Pong. This site was recently the focus of an excavation by the EFEO.

Below: Phnom Dei is another remote site with brick temples nearly completely under trees and forest

Below: This brick temple was near the Phnom Bok. There were originally three temples, but only the central tower is standing.

Below: Lastly we took a boat out onto the Tonle Sap (my first time!) to check out some sites that were only accessible by water. They were interesting but not so photogenic. Instead, here’s a Tonle Sap scene.

Below: And last but not least, a floating pig pen in a floating village on the Tonle Sap.