Prasat Damrei Troam

Noted on Google Maps as “Prasat Damrei Troam”, owing to the seated elephant statue that sits atop a laterite platform beside the laterite lined causeway and the beginning of the “staircase” that leads down to cascade/creek bed running down the side of the mountain. It’s located an easy walk from Prasat Ta Muen Thom, on the Cambodian side. As you are walking from the parking bay to Ta Muen Thom you’ll see signboards pointing out the trail.

I put staircase in quotes as there are in fact no stairs or steps leading down other than the laterite causeway terminating with a couple of steps at the edge of foot trail leading to the cascade or gulley that may have been the original way up and down.

There’s a collection of sandstone remnants including several pedestals, causeway bollards, round pillars, plinths, and what appears to be a moonstone (doorstep) and maybe even a sandstone pediment. The seated elephant, carved from sandstone, is unusual for its style and one could wonder if it is in fact contemporary to the temple remnants. The style of the causeway bollards and other remnants do appear as they are likely to be contemporary to Prasat Ta Muen Thom.

There is also two standing wooden Buddha statues of more recent times. Some wooden Buddhas date as far back to pre-Angkorian times, most hail from post-Angkorian times, but these are surely more contemporary, but beautiful nonetheless.

It’s also worth noting that this ensemble is around 400m to the west of the north-south axis of Prasat Ta Muen Thom and it wasn’t apparent whether the laterite pavement, as seen among the images above, continued to the temple or terminated. It’s also worth considering if there is in fact a staircase proper on that north south axis aligning with Prasat Ta Muen Thom and Prasat Chan axis.

Was this once a small prasat (temple)? There is enough remnants to suggest a small shrine, there are also bollards to suggest an important causeway. There’s also room to think that it might be a rearrangement from later times, with pieces gathered from somewhere nearby. Some contemporary folklore surrounds the site, pertaining to struggles between the two sides, and the constructions we see took place around 2011 when the Elephant was enshrined by the Khmer side.

The friendly Khmer guards and their puppy led us a little further to the west along the mountains edge to a wonderful lookout, and a contemporary Buddha statue that over looks the plains of Cambodia below.

Rodney Charles LHuillier

Living in Asia for over a decade and now residing in beautiful Siem Reap. Rodney Charles L'Huillier has spent over seven years in Cambodia and is the author of Ancient Cambodia (2024) and Essential Siem Reap (2017, 2019). Contact via [email protected] - more..