Also recorded as Spean Phdao. It’s a laterite bridge, recorded as 40 m long, on the ancient road between Khvav and Preah Khan of Kampong Svay.
At a recorded 40m long, I think it’s the second longest bridge along the ancient East Road from Angkor to Preah Khan of Kampong Svay. The present-day trail diverts way to the north of the ancient road at this point, and this amazing bridge is a true hidden but not forgotten wonder of the Khmer Empire. We visited this one on our Autumn trip along the ancient road (early Feb 2025).
The bridge featured a sandstone Naga balustrade, remnants of which are still in situ. No Naga headstones were seen, although due to the overgrowth, it wasn’t possible to explore end to end of the bridge. Come summer, it would likely be possible to explore further while keeping the remoteness of the area and other safety factors in mind.
The bridge wasn’t recorded during early French surveys, nor Bruno Brugiuer’s survey in 2000. Its only public record that I could find appears in the Cisark Database with a date of 2007. It is noted in the 2020 study by Uchida et al., which concluded that bridges along the East Royal Road are highly likely to have been constructed in the late 11th to early 12th century and in the early Angkor Wat period.
Map
Site Info
- Site Name: Spean Phdau
- Reference ID: HA17959 | Posted: May 20, 2021 | Last Update: February 9th, 2025
- Tags/Group: Ancient Bridges, Ancient Royal Road, Royal Road Beng Mealea-Preah Khan of Kampong Svay, Temples
- Location: Preah Vihear Province > Sangkum Thmei District > Ronak Ser Commune > Rolom Laeng Village
- MoCFA ID: 7397
