The Phnom Penh Visitors Guide 62nd

Pagodas

Architecture of Phnom Penh

Pagodas

A rchitecturally speaking, Phnom Penh is a comparatively new city. Prior to the late 19th century the city was but a few pagodas and clusters of wooden structures along the riverfront.

Cambodia is a Theravada Buddhist country, and in Phnom Penh you are never far from a Buddhist pagoda (wat.) Dozens of wats dot the city with at least one located in almost every neighborhood. Though many of the wats are comparatively modern, Phnom Penh’s original five wats were established in the 15th century and all are still functioning. Pagoda grounds are colorful and photogenic places and most are open and welcoming to the general public. But if you visit a pagoda please be respectful of the place and people. Dress conservatively, remove your hat on pagoda grounds, remove your shoes before entering the vihear (main temple) and respect the privacy of monks and worshippers. The following short list of pagodas include some of the city’s more historic and photogenic wats, as well as being in areas popular with visitors. See Ray Zepp’s book ‘A Field Guide to Cambodia Pagodas’ for a more complete list and description of Phnom Penh’s pagodas. Wat Ounalom Corner of Street 154 on Sothearos Blvd, riverfront This sprawling pagoda in the heart of the riverfront district is as impressive from across the street as the interior - its golden temples and towering stupas defining the streetscape. It is also particularly accustomed to receiving walk-in visitors. Wat Ounalom is the home to the Buddhist patriarch and is reputedly the oldest Buddhist foundation in the city, probably predating the abandonment of Angkor in the 15th century. Map Area G-11 Wat Botum Street 7, 100 meters from the Royal Palace Wat Botum is a colorful, photogenic wat, the Wat Ounalom

Post Office and Old Central Police Station, constructed circa 1890s

Almost every currently existing structure was built after the beginning of the French colonial period in 1863. ‘Chinese shophouse’ style buildings dominate the city, characterized by deep narrow apartments composed of a combined ground-floor businessfront and upstairs residence. Standing in distinctive difference, European influenced colonial period structures are interspersed through the central city. At the height of the colonial period Phnom Penh was reputed to be the most beautiful city in French Indochina - recalling Paris in its manicured parks and picturesque boulevards lined with ornate villas. Though sometimes difficult to see through the grime and disrepair of years of hardship and neglect, much of that beauty still exists. Sites of Architectural Interest The historical architecture of the city may be divided into three broad categories: 1) The ubiquitous ‘Chinese shopho-use-style structures, some as old as the late 19th century but most later - from the 1900s through the 1960s. 2) Late-19th/early-20th century French Colonial buildings encompassing a range of influences and styles. Early villa-style residences and public buildings display an eclectic mix of European influences. Slightly later structures such as Phsar Thmei reflect the Art Deco movement and other western styles of the period. Also of this period, ‘Colonial Traditional’ style buildings such as the National Museum that draw heavily on traditional Cambodian themes. Most of Phnom Penh’s colonial-era highlights are located within the city center with clusters near the Royal Palace, around Post Office Square and Wat Phnom, and dotting Norodom Blvd from Sihanouk to Wat Phnom. 3) ‘New Khmer Architecture’ of the late-1950s/60s, such as the Chaktomuk Theatre and Independence Monument, built in the post-Independence ‘Golden-era’ and displaying a modern but distinctively Cambodian direction. Few examples exist in the city center. See the city center map on page 48-49 for sites of architectural interest and a walking tour. The route passes many of the better French colonial buildings as well as examples of later architecture. The whole route takes about 4 hours on foot. Faster by cyclo or motodup. For more on the architecture of Phnom Penh check out the books: ‘Phnom Penh Then and Now,’ ‘Cultures of Independence’ and ‘Building Cambodia: New Khmer Architecture 1953-1970.’

compound crowded with ornate stupas, including the towering ‘Buddha’s Relic Stupa.’ Though Wat Botum took its present structure in 1937 it is one of the city’s original wats, possibly founded by King Ponhea Yat in the 15th century, the first

Wat Botum

king to rule from Phnom Penh. Map Area I-12

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