Preah Pul

Cave temple located on Phnom Tnaot, also known as Prah Khpur and Preah Kpul.

Historical Notes

Prah Khpur. The cave designated by this name is located towards the middle of the eastern slopes of Phnom Tenot; it opens halfway up, at the bottom of a narrow and bushy ravine formed by the bed of a small stream. It is about fifteen meters wide. deep ten, and high 1 m. barely 30 in its highest part in front of the entrance. Two limonite walls perpendicular to the exterior wall of the rock form a sort of open nave in front to the NE, which was covered with a roof of light materials. Deny limonite retaining walls formed of very narrow steps which also probably served as stairs. reveal the very steep access slopes, maintain the crumbling land, and create two narrow terraces which facilitate the ascent.

On the upper terrace, almost leaning against the wall of the nave. rises another small limonite building, rectangular, opening to the E. through a low door, framed in sandstone, which still has its two polygonal columns, but barely outlined. The decorative lintean that they supported is overturned, but well preserved, in front of its original location (fig. 24). It measures .9m x .4m on a surface .10m thick and can be classified as type IV. It is decorated with sculptures representing the interview of two great people escorted by their servants: the scene takes place in front of a dwelling which is depicted with sufficient detail to allow a reconstruction, and in this way this document is particularly interesting. The building whose elevation we thus know would correspond, as a type, to that of which we found the ruins near the Spean Komeng and of which we give the plan under number 182.

The cave and its surroundings present numerous remains of statues, including two of men, measuring almost 2 meters in height, which could be entirely reconstructed. The rest is of little interest, they are small statuettes of Visnu on the shoulders. of Garuda, ablution basins, long steles representing the Brahmanic deities on their various mounts, and a number of these small stone cubes bearing on one of their faces a square hole in the middle of sixteen others of which we have given the sketch (fig. 50).

At the bottom of the slopes, on the banks of the stream, we also find a sort of terminal with a square base, ending at its upper part with a pyramidion. The faces of this terminal are divided by twenty-six horizontal lines, spaced four centimeters apart, including twenty on the lower part and six on the pyramidal part. Each of these lines carries a considerable number of small figurines, all similar, which represent the same character with four arms, standing; the two hands of the outstretched front arms rest on clubs common to the two juxtaposed figurines, the upper arms are open and raised above the head. AYMONIER, Cambodge, I. 413.

Inventaire descriptif des monuments du Cambodge, Lunet de Lajonquière, 1902

We are the next day for lunch in the village of Práḥ Hop; on the road, one km away. about before I get there, I come across a new terminal. In the evening we reach Práh Khpur, a cave which is now known only to one man, an old man, the same one who took the C’ de Lajonquière there. It is 6 or 7 km away. to the east of the village. The wall which closes the cave has two circular notches for columns of this shape, and one of them extends into the room in front, thus giving an impression of primitive Khmer art; however, no other detail of the ruin responds to this and we know, from certain buildings of Jayavarman V, that the round column was sometimes maintained until this time. The room, covered with a roof, was not closed in front, but only guarded by two large dvarapala. The most curious room in the cave is a pedestal that I am reconstructing and which has received 11 lingas, 10 small ones in a circle around a larger one. The remarkable lintel marked with the “C'” of Lajonquière (Inv., I, fig. 24, p. LI) fades in the weather and deserves to be sheltered in a museum; I didn’t have the means to make this transport. The curious block at the Vişņu lines still exists at the lower source.

Mission of Mr. H. Parmentier in the North-East region of Cambodia – BEFEO – 1930

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