The Oddar Meanchey provincial Department of Culture and Fine Arts exhibited some of the collected artefacts in October. FB
The Oddar Meanchey provincial Department of Culture and Fine Arts has embarked on a mission to document and preserve the province’s rich cultural heritage. Over a thousand artefacts, gathered from area hills and temple ruins, await a brighter future as they find home in a newly constructed storage facility.
Department director Hong Yoeun shared his insights into this undertaking, shedding light on the challenges of preserving a treasure trove of historical fragments and the importance of their recognition as national heritage.
He explained that the department has been actively gathering statues, sculptures and fragments from across the province, which shares its border with Thailand. Their efforts aim to provide safekeeping for these items, previously scattered without proper storage.
Yoeun disclosed that a total of 1,399 relics have been catalogued thus far.
He said that following the recent preparation of artefact storage, creating a written history for each piece will be a time-consuming process necessary for organising quality museum exhibits.
“At present, detailed information for each piece has not been documented. As a result, we have not yet opened our doors to students and the public for academic study, exploration and visits,” he explained.
Yoeun mentioned that the collection contains various types of items, with the majority of them in poor condition. Consequently, he refrained from providing specific details about the types of objects. He said the provincial culture department is in the process of cataloguing these items in a dedicated book that will enable research and the documentation of historical information related to these objects.
“In approximately one year’s time, we plan to complete the compilation and documentation of the historical records. This task is particularly challenging due to the abundance of fragmented artefacts, including those with only limbs, torsos or other partial elements. As a result, creating a comprehensive provenance for these items presents a notable challenge,” he said.
Yoeun explained that despite the collection’s numerous small fragments, every single item is regarded as valuable national heritage. Their recognition is essential for affirming the history of the region and for providing continuity from one era to the next.
