Public Lecture: Angkor, Diversity, and Archaeological Explorations at Phnom Kulen, Cambodia

A talk by Kyle Latinis and Stephen Murphy on the recent Singapore-Cambodia excavations at Phnom Kulen will be held next Tuesday at the Malay Heritage Centre in Singapore.

Angkor, Diversity, and Archaeological Explorations at Phnom Kulen, Cambodia
Venue: Malay Heritage Centre, Singapore
Date: 25 August 2015
Time: 7 pm

Phnom Kulen (Mahendraparvata), a mountain range near Siem Reap, Cambodia is considered the birthplace of Angkorian civilization (9th–14th centuries CE). A joint Singaporean (NSC at ISEAS–Yusof Ishak Institute; in collaboration with ACM) and Cambodian (APSARA) team investigated the nature of Phnom Kulen’s history, settlement, environment and culture over the last two years; to include archaeological excavations as well as environmental and ethnographic research.

Recent fieldwork in June 2015 targeted enigmatic Sema Stone sites located near the possible “Royal Residence” (Banteay Site) of 9th century Angkorian “founder” and King, Jayavarman II. The Banteay Site was the focus of 2014 investigations by the ISEAS–Yusof Ishak Institute and APSARA crew. Overall research results have relevance for testing economic, political, and socio-cultural interaction models. It also sheds new light into the origins of early Angkorian civilization. The Sema Stone sites point towards cultural contact with northeast Thailand during the 8th – 9th centuries. They appear to indicate the existence of a Buddhist monastic settlement on Phnom Kulen similar to those in northeast Thailand during this period. The joint research endeavors have significant contributions to regional partnership strengthening.