Part of ancient Cambodian temple opens to public as restoration drags on

16 July 2006 (Canoe) – More news on the reopening of the partially-restored Baphuon temple.

Part of ancient Cambodian temple opens to public as restoration drags on

An initial attempt to refurbish the monument, one of the oldest and largest temples at the famed Angkor complex, started in 1960, but work stopped a decade later as Cambodia slid into a long civil war, and during the Khmer Rouge regime all the reconstruction plans were destroyed.

Work resumed 11 years ago and, now, for the first time, one section – known as the eastern pavilion – has opened to the public. A team of French archaeologists, funded by the French government, hopes to complete the $5.7-million US project in 2009