Picture of the Day —July 18, 2008
Good morning, Netizens...
In today's Picture of the Day a Cambodian man walks at Preah Vihear temple near the Thai border north of Phnom Penh. (TANG CHHIN SOTHY/AFP/Getty Images) (July 17, 2008)
The temple was built between the 9th and 11th Centuries, with most of the temple constructed during the reigns of the kings Suryavarman I (1002–1050) and Suryavarman II (1113–1150). Although a great contention exists between Thailand and the newly independent Cambodia, each of which claims ownership of this ancient, sacred place, it is proclaimed as a place of peace and meditation.
Among one of the inscriptions that line the long hallways that lead to the sanctuary are a series of glyphs that describe in gravest detail that Preah Vihear should always be a place of peace, although countless skirmishes have been fought over it, as recently as 2008.
Dave