Disarrayed Structures

Inner Enclosure
Preah Khan, Angkor

This confusion of stones is typical of many as-yet unrestored areas of the complex. The drilled holes accommodated wooden dowels; a frame was attached to the dowels, and decorative bronze sheeting was attached to the frame. In this way, much of the inner temple was originally encased in bronze - 1500 tons of it, according to the dedicatory inscription. Because of its value, the bronze was stripped off and recycled when the temple fell into disuse; none remains on-site today.

According to John Sanday (Millennium of Glory, pp.89-90), regularly-spaced holes like these were used for attaching bronze plaques, while unevenly-spaced holes, in temples such as Phimai, were used for attaching stucco.