Cambodia to ask UN to list 1,400-year-old temple as world heritage site

PHNOM PENH, Cambodia will ask UN to list the Sambo Prey Kuk temple, which was built from 615 A.D. to 650 A.D., located in the Kompong Thom province, as a world heritage site, Khmer-language daily newspaper the Rasmei Kampuchea reported on Monday.

"We are preparing the proposal for UN to register the temple, which was built during the rule of Khmer King Isanverman I, with the Committee of World Heritage," the newspaper quoted Som Sokhun, secretary of state at the Ministry of Culture and Fine Arts, as saying.

The government has to organize a master plan for development and conservation of the temple, he said.

It was even older than the world-renowned Angkor Wat in Siem Reap province, which has been the hottest sightseeing spot of the kingdom, he said.

It was built with clay, but not stones, with which the Angkor Wat was constructed, he said.

The Sambo Prey Kuk temple is expected to become a place for people to study and research Khmer culture, construction, arts and history, he added.

The UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) already listed the Angkor Wat and the Preah Vihear temple in Preah Vihear province as World Heritage Sites.