Nokor Bachey Temple

Nokor Bachey temple is a cultural and historical site. It is located 2.2 kilometers from Kampong Cham provincial town along National Road 7, about 122 kilometers northeast of Phnom Penh. Visitors traveling from Phnom Penh will see the gate to the pagoda on right. The temple was built in the middle of the 11th century, during the reign of Suryavarman II and King Ouphey dedicating to Brahmanism. The temple is about 200 meters inside the gate. The site is accessible to almost all type of vehicle. The temple is divided as followed:

Preah Theat Teuk Chhar

Preah Theat Teuk Chhar is a group of Temples in Thmo Da villages, Beung Nay commune and Thmei village, Krouch commune in Prey Chhar district, about 39 kilometers from Kampong Cham provincial town. Visitors can reach Preah Theat Teuk Chhar by taking National Road 7 from Kampong Cham, turn right at the provincial road and drive 13 kilometers before turning right again and driving another 5 kilometers along a canal trail, to the temple site.

The temple were constructed in AD 1005, during the reign of King Suryavarman I. as proposed by King’s adviser Chung Chheal4,the King agreed to build these temples and Leaksintra started construction on the site called Sithiboriya that which owned by the king, who also contributed money. Leaksintra, however, used his salesmanship to encourage the local people to contribute the money as well, until the project was finished.

Once of the temples houses a Shilva lingam named Sreipatresvara and two divinity statues Paramesvara and Sarasvata at both side. another cave like temple believed to house a god is located along a canal, near a waterfall. badly damaged over the years, only one door remains today, and it is overgrown with vegetation.

the architect excavated a large pond on the right side of the temple called Leaksintrada. a golden Silva lingam was kept in the middle of the pond. nearby, a village of wealthy people was formed, in addition, people from nearby villages were invited to live there, too, the village soon became a crowded but cheerful town.

Leaksintra told the king of the new town, and the king went there to celebrate the town’s inauguration in AD 1025. he gave the city numerous gifts, including 29soldiers and a rice field that surrounded the temple. he had pond dug and a huge court built for the festival celebrations, and he gave decorations for the temple. he named the site Leaksintrabot in honor of its architect, Leaksintra.

Later, the site became a place for religious worship. The religious practiced changed from king to king, some king practiced Brahmanism, while some practiced Mahayana Buddhism. Other were Theravada Buddhists, which explains why there are so many small temples at Preah Theat Teuk Chhar. All told, there are 551 small temples which are influenced by Brahmanism and Buddhism. some of the temples contain statues of heroes who gave their lives for the nation.

many of the temple were destroyed by years of war. others were heavily damaged. today, monk and visitors to the site search in hopes of finding the name and foundations of these temples so they might be rebuilt. Some temples have been rebuilt already, their foot and tile roofing replaced with concrete.

Thom temple

The site of an ancient temple is at the top of the hill. it includes three structures built of solid brick. one of the structures is no longer standing , while the other two remain, along with some ancient statues and other subject related to Brahmanism. a relatively new temple site on the same terrace, not far from the ancient structures. Villagers who live near the site believe that the ancient temples are protected by magic objects, and if visitors do not pray to the objects, their photographs will not turn out.

Preah Theat temple

Preah Theat temple is east of Thom Temple. It include six ancient temples. Of this six five were destroyed by war, and the remaining temple has nearby collapsed as a result of thieves digging for treasures. Northeast of Thom Temple is Preak Theat pond. In ancient times this pond was a canal.

Koh Andet Koh Prak

Koh Andet Koh Prak is an island inside a pond, north of Prey Nokor village. It is 30 meters long and 20 meters wide. It is also known as Srah Teum.

The Rampart

the rampart surrounds Prey Nokor Knong-Krau city, it consists of a complex of wild bamboo that was planted to block access to the city. The rampart was originally10 meters high and 15 meters wide. each site is 2,500 meters long. Some part of the rampart have been damaged.
This ancient site is popular among animists and tourists who wish to pray and enjoy traditional games during traditional festival days.

Wat Preah Theat Thma Da Temple

Wat Preah Theat Thma Da Temple is an ancient site located in Preah Theat Thma Da village, Preah Theat commune, O’Reang Oav district, about 38 kilometers southeast of Kampng Cham town. Take National Road 7 form Kampong Cham town, Turn right at National Road 11 and continue on to O’Reang Oav district. The site is 8 kilometers trail down a dirt trail.

Wat Preah Theat Thma Da temple is 190 meters long and 160 meters wide. The temple includes Preah Theat temple and a pond that s 180 meters wide and 950 meters long .The water is in the pond is very clear. It is called Tonle Sa Ngout. along the entrance to the Tonle is another temple called Preah Vihear Preah Chul Nipean. at one time there was a statues of the reclining reaching nirvana, but the statues was stolen.

there are a number of statues in Wat Preah Theat Thma Da that local people worship. they include the statues of Atitap Vero, Kongchak, Hekpous, Srei Krupleak, Tuosmuk and Angkrong Pleung.

Behind the temple there is another hall Meru Mena built during French colonial time. At the front door there is a lintel5 that is sculpted on sandstone. Much of it has been damaged. inside Meru is a sculpture of Haothi Neang Umaparvati, which the Brahmans worshiped. It is believed that if the coconut dropped into the hole inside Meru, the coconut will appear in the middle of the pond. Meru was built was on the site of an old temple.