The Phnom Penh Post’s coverage of the newly-opened Angkor Panorama Museum. Critics say that the museum is used by North Korea to get around economic sanctions, while proponents argue that proceeds from the museum will eventually return to Cambodia over a 10-20 year period.
A controversial new view of Angkor Wat
Phnom Penh Post, 12 December 2015
Standing in the middle of the Siem Reap Angkor Panorama Museum’s 360-degree oil painting and diorama is like being transported to another era.
Only the air-conditioned environment detracts from the surreal feeling of standing in the open air gazing out on an ancient empire and a landscape that stretches as far as the eye can see.
After years under construction, the $24 million North Korea-funded museum – which critics have warned is little more than a way for the communist dictatorship to get around economic sanctions – finally opened its doors last week.
Setting aside the controversial nature of the place, the centrepiece is pretty impressive. Some 123 metres around and 13 metres high, it depicts three different periods of the Angkorian empire – construction, prosperity and war.
Full story here.
