Archaeologists unearth another centuries-old tortoise statue at Cambodia’s famed Angkor reservoir

On Wednesday 6th May 2020, the repair team of Temple in the centre of Srah Srong discovered a tortoise statue measure 56-by-93 centimetres.

They found another sandstone-made statue of a tortoise on Friday 8th May 2020 during excavations, and this one is a little bit smaller than the one they unearthed on Wednesday, said the communications director and spokesman for the Apsara National Authority, which oversees the Angkor archaeological park.

The archaeological excavation at the 10th century Srah Srong temple standing on an island in the middle of Srah Srang (Royal Bath) reservoir at the complex of Angkor archaeological park started in late March and is scheduled to complete within six weeks.

The dig also found several other ancient objects, such as metal tridents, a large piece of a dragon statue, and many crystal stones.

Located in Siem Reap province, the 401-square-km Angkor archaeological park, inscribed on the World Heritage List of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) in 1992, is the kingdom’s most popular tourist destination.

The ancient park attracted 384,317 foreign tourists in the first four months of 2020, earning gross revenue of nearly 18 million U.S. dollars from ticket sales, according to an Angkor Enterprise’s report.