Pres. Moon visits Preah Pithu temple in Angkor, Cambodia

President Moon Jae-in visiting Preah Pithu Temple, Yonhap DB.

South Korean President Moon Jae-in visited Preah Pithu Temple and Angkor Wat Templ, Siem Reap today while staying in Cambodia from Mar. 14 to 16.  

The Republic of Korea has been supportive for the restoration projects of Preah Pithu Temple since 2015. 

Located in Angkor Thom, north-east of the Bayon, in front of Tep Pranam, Preah Pithu is a group of five temples at Angkor. The temples weren't built in the same period. They're identified by letters: T, U, V, W and X. "X" is a Buddhist temple, it remained unfinished and is probably the latest. The others are Hindu. The five temples are in bad conditions, upper levels are ruined, but their carvings are interesting and the site is rather peaceful, wooded and scarcely crowded. 

President Moon Jae-in visiting Preah Pithu Temple, Yonhap DB.

A moat, often dry, surrounds some of the temples. They were cleaned first by Jean Commaille in 1908, then by Henri Marchal from 1918 to 1920.

The Preah Pithu temple President Moon Jae-in visited on the last day of his Southeast Asian tour is Korea's first cultural property restoration project in Angkor.

Korea cultural Heritage Foundation conducted a primary project worth KRW 4 billion from 2015 until last year. The Foundation carried out field research on the temples and made survey drawings through actual survey. In addition, it researched the cross-shaped terraces of Temple T and conducted technical training and invitation training to strengthen the expertise of the cultural workforce in Cambodia.

President Moon Jae-in visiting Preah Pithu Temple, Yonhap DB.

Through this research, the temple was first established in the early 12th century earlier than the known 13th century.