In 1296, Zhou Daguan, a geographer from the Chinese Yuan Dynasty, arrived at the Indo-China Peninsula via the Maritime Silk Road. He went to Angkor, the capital of Zhenla (now Cambodia), and spent nearly a year collecting the wind. According to what he saw and heard, he wrote "Zhenla Fengji" 》. About 500 years later, "Zhen La Feng Tu Ji" was translated into French and eventually guided the explorers to discover the Angkor monuments that have been hidden in the jungle for hundreds of years.

In 1992, Angkor’s monuments were listed as World Heritage Sites by the World Heritage Committee as a heritage. In 1993, Cambodia and UNESCO launched the Angkor Antiquities Conservation International Action, and China clearly stated its participation. Since then, in this ancient and mysterious land, a group of Chinese cultural protection experts continued to write the story of Angkor in the Sino-Cambodian civilization exchange.

In 1998, the Chinese Government's assistance to the Angkor Monument Protection Task Force organized by the China Cultural Relics Institute came to Cambodia to launch its first project to repair the Zhousa Temple built in the 11th century.

The Chinese players are experienced experts in cultural protection, but at the beginning of the work of protecting and repairing Angkor, they faced a new topic. Xu Yan, who has been engaged in the protection of Angkor's monuments for more than 20 years, clearly remembers: "Before the restoration, the Zhousa Temple can be said to be only a building site, a fragment of the wall remains, one of the most damaged temples in Angkor's monuments."

"We have determined the principle of 'rescue reinforcement, site protection, key restoration' according to the situation of the building itself, strengthened the building foundation, and patiently matched more than 4,000 scattered components, and returned to the original place." Xu Yan said that after 7 On-site construction during the year, the Temple of Zhousa re-established from the ruins.

After the completion of the Zhousa Temple project, Chinese experts ushered in a bigger challenge – repairing the Chajia Temple. The temple-sized temples of this national temple not only occupy a larger area, but also have multiple dangers in the structure. The scattered stones are tens of thousands. The unfinished state of the year also brought more challenges to the restoration.

With the experience of the Zhousa Temple, the Chinese team members have deepened their research, protection and restoration of the Tea Gum Temple. In 2007, they began to conduct preliminary research on the construction, archaeology, structure and other aspects of the Chajiao Temple, and carried out systematic work such as three-dimensional laser scanning recording and mapping, engineering geological survey, stone weathering mechanism and protection experiment.

“The construction schedule during the repair period is specific to the number of components, the number of spare parts and the number of resettlement at a certain time. Each decision relies on a large number of surveying and calculations,” said Jin Zhaoyu, a researcher at the China Cultural Heritage Research Institute.

Jin Zhaoyu showed the reporters the archives of these stones. Each stone has independent codes, stone photos, three-dimensional data and other information that can indicate its location. Experts make 3D simulations on the computer and use computer calculations to find the right position for each stone.

After visiting the Tea Gum Temple, French tourist Surin praised the work of the Chinese Cultural Relics Restoration Team: "They work very well, retaining the 'soul' of the Tea Gum Temple and repairing it in its originality."

In the view of Chinese experts, the Angkor Conservation and Restoration Project is a multi-dimensional “Arena”. It is not only a platform for cultural and technological exchanges between China and other countries, but also a stage for demonstrating China's advanced cultural preservation concepts, methods and technologies.

Jin Zhaoyu said that France has the longest history of research on Angkor's monuments. Japan pays attention to local people's livelihood and infrastructure assistance when repairing Angkor's monuments. Germany pays attention to stone cultural relics protection and training. More than 30 participating countries have their own strengths. . “Through the Tea Gum Temple Project, China’s cultural relics protection concept, traditional skills and modern technology have been tested and demonstrated, and won recognition from Cambodia and international counterparts.”

On December 4, 2018, Cambodian Minister of Culture and Art Peng Sagna presented medals on behalf of Prime Minister Hun Sen, who made outstanding contributions to the protection of Angkor's monuments. Xu Yan, Wang Yuanlin and Gu Jun of the China Cultural Heritage Institute won the Order of the Knights of the Kingdom of Cambodia.

Xu Yan witnessed the progress of the two projects of Zhousa Temple and Chajia Temple. "We strictly follow the internationally recognized concept of protection, and have formed a Chinese model characterized by the principle of minimum intervention, the principle of not changing the original state of culture, the principle of trial advancement, and the principle of equal emphasis on research and restoration, especially the emphasis on adopting a 'reversible' approach. After more than 20 years of training in this international stage of cultural relics protection, the Chinese cultural security team has made rapid progress and has stood at the forefront of the world."

A spokesman for the Cambodian Angkor Monument Protection and Management Agency, Longoza, told the reporter that Chinese experts have highly skilled and experienced restoration techniques, and the restoration results have been highly evaluated by the Technical Committee of the International Coordinating Committee of the Angkor Monument. In the field of cultural heritage protection in countries such as Cambodia, China's role is increasingly important.

In January 2018, China and Cambodia signed an agreement, and the Cambodian government handed over the ruins of the royal palace, the most important part of the Angkor site, to the Chinese team for repair. The Wanggong site restoration project is expected to start in 2019.

"The house is quite spectacular, the corridors are restored, the abruptness is awkward, and there is a small scale." Zhou Daguan described the former royal palace in the "Zhen La Feng Tu Ji".

Bethok, former chairman of the UNESCO World Heritage Committee, said that the site of the palace is located in the royal city of Angkor. Its status and significance are like the Forbidden City in China. From this point of view, Chinese experts have an advantage to understand the site from a cultural and philosophical level. “Chinese cultural relics experts have a high level of technology, and cultural connections are an additional advantage.”

Chinese experts believe that the Wanggong site project will protect and explore new ideas for Angkor, and comprehensively consider building protection, stone carving protection, archaeological excavation, laboratory construction, Cambodian talent capacity training, biological disease management, education and training, exchange and cooperation, etc. Thus forming a new model of "protection + rational use + sustainable development".

“We must respect the traditional architectural methods, not only to repair the appearance, historical information, and traditional craftsmanship of the monuments.” Xu Yan is looking forward to this project, which is expected to last for 11 years.

The protection of Angkor's monuments for many years has also trained a number of cultural relics in Cambodia.

According to Chinese experts, more than 160 Cambodian technicians and workers worked with China during the busiest construction period. Over the past 20 years, a batch of Cambodian technicians have grown up in the project and are now active in the rehabilitation projects of several Angkor artifacts.

"To respect each other, exchange mutual understanding, learn from each other's strengths, and make progress together, the dialogue between the two ancient civilizations of China and Cambodia will shine more dazzlingly in the future." Xu said. Editor / Zhao Jing