Preah Vihear: Temple, Territory, and the Ethics of Witnessing

By Ian Kydd Miller

Perched atop a cliff in the Dângrêk Mountains, the Preah Vihear temple is more than stone and silence. It’s a convergence point—of empires, treaties, national pride, and contested memory. For those of us drawn to the ethics of seeing, it offers a profound case study in how history, cartography, and conflict shape the frame.

🏛️ A Temple of Ascent

Built between the 11th and 12th centuries during the height of the Khmer Empire, Preah Vihear was dedicated to Shiva. Unlike the concentric symmetry of Angkor Wat, this temple stretches linearly across 800 meters, rising through five gopuras toward the cliff’s edge. It’s not just architecture—it’s pilgrimage. A slow, deliberate ascent toward the divine.

The temple’s elevated position wasn’t just spiritual. It was strategic. From its northern edge, one can see deep into the plains of what is now Thailand. And therein lies the tension.

🌍 Borders Drawn in Ink

In the late 18th century, Siam (modern Thailand) absorbed western Cambodian provinces like Battambang and Siem Reap. Cambodia, weakened and fragmented, turned to France for protection in 1863. The 1904 Franco-Siamese treaty defined the border along the watershed of the Dângrêk range. But the French-produced Annexe I Map placed Preah Vihear south of the watershed—within Cambodian territory.

Thailand later argued the map deviated from the treaty. But it had never formally objected. In 1962, the International Court of Justice ruled in Cambodia’s favour. In 2013, the ICJ reaffirmed Cambodian sovereignty over the temple and promontory, though adjacent land remains disputed.

🧨 Conflict and Reverberation

Access to the temple is easier from Thailand, but control rests with Cambodia. This geographic contradiction has led to decades of tension—military clashes, landmine incidents, and nationalist fervour. When Cambodia successfully listed Preah Vihear as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2008, the dispute reignited. The temple became a symbol of pride, sovereignty, and unresolved colonial legacies.

🧭 The Ethics of Witnessing

For documentary photographers, Preah Vihear is not just a subject—it’s a question. How do we document contested heritage without reinforcing nationalist spectacle? How do we honour the temple’s spiritual gravity while acknowledging its political weight?

Presence matters. Restraint matters. To photograph Preah Vihear is to engage with postcolonial cartography, with the ethics of access, and with the responsibility of the frame. It’s not a trophy. It’s a threshold.

📚 Further Reading

• Preah Vihear Temple – Wikipedia

• A Postcolonial Preah Vihear – JSTOR Daily

• Preah Vihear: Cultural Unity and Regional Stability

Preah Vihear reminds us that the past is not past. It’s mapped, disputed, and lived. And for those of us who witness through the lens, it demands not just technical precision—but ethical clarity.