Preah Vihear Temple or
Prasat Preah Vihear or
Temple of Preah Vihear (
Khmer:
ប្រាសាទព្រះវិហារ,
Thai:
ปราสาทเขาพระวิหาร,
Prasat Preah Vihear) is a
Khmer temple situated atop a 525-metre (1,722 ft) cliff in the
Dângrêk Mountains, in the
Preah Vihear province of northern
Cambodia and on the border of
Kantharalak district (
amphoe) in
Sisaket province of eastern
Thailand. In 1962, following a lengthy dispute between Thailand and Cambodia over ownership, a majority of the International Court of Justice (
ICJ) in
The Hague awarded the temple to Cambodia.
Afording a view for many kilometers across a plain, Prasat Preah Vihear has the most spectacular setting of all the temples built during the six-centuries-long
Khmer Empire. As a key edifice of the empire's spiritual life, it was supported and modified by successive kings and so bears elements of several architectural styles. Preah Vihear is unusual among Khmer temples in being constructed along a long north-south axis, rather than having the conventional rectangular plan with orientation toward the east, and was obviously built to serve the region
to the north. The temple gives its name to Cambodia's Preah Vihear province, in which it is now located, as well as the
Khao Phra Wihan National Park which borders it in Thailand's Sisaket province and through which the temple is most easily accessible. On July 7, 2008, Preah Vihear was listed as a
UNESCO
