via SEA Globe, 14 December 2020: A photo essay of Angkor Wat through the ages, in celebration of the anniversary of Angkor’s inscription into the World Heritage List.
Pre-covid-19, well over two million tourists per year would travel to Cambodia to sneak a glimpse into the ancient kingdom through the spyglass of Angkor Wat. The temple’s importance as a historical, cultural, and religious symbol stands steadfast to the north of Cambodia’s Siem Reap province, and serves as a reminder of the advanced civilisation that came before us.
December 14 marks 28 years to the day that Angkor Wat and the surrounding complex was given UNESCO status as a World Heritage Site. After succumbing to heavy looting at the hands of an organised crime ring between the 1970s and 1990s, this move by UNESCO allowed for area zoning, the establishment of the APSARA organisation that today oversees the site, as well as a new law on the protection of cultural heritage to come into being.
