Fact Check: A Replica of Angkor Wat Temple Factually Built in France
The recent construction of a pagoda in Buriram province, Thailand, has caused a stir among Cambodians. It is said that the construction of the new temple was copied from the architectural style of Angkor Wat. This reaction has become a topic of debate and debate on Cambodian social media recently. Meanwhile a viral post showing photos of an ancient temple was posted by a Cambodian user on Facebook recently. This user claimed and linked that it was Angkor Wat temple in 1931. This post was reacted with mixed comments and shared by Khmer-speaking social media users. However, after running a Google Reverse Image and Yandex, it proves that the claim above was misleading.
This is about our investigation of this claim.
Social Media Claim
On the evening of July 9, 2021, one of the Facebook users posted four photos. This post shows a view of an ancient temple with the exact form and shape of the Angkor Wat temple. It also claims in its writings that this was the Angkor Wat temple in 1931. The four photos were shared several times, with mixed reactions and comments from many Facebook users speaking Khmer and it may be believed that it was the real temple located in Siem Reap, Cambodia.
A screenshot image captured from a Facebook user's post translates in English as “Rare photos! please share, Angkor Wat temple in 1931”.
The same four photos were also posted and shared by other Facebook pages on the morning of July 9, 2021 with the post in Khmer translated in English as “Angkor Wat temple in 1931, Angkor Wat belonged to the Khmer”.
Fact Check
Fact Crescendo Cambodia had started to check and verify this photo directly by running a Google Reverse Image search, which brought us to the sources containing the following photos.
Photos of Angkor Wat temple with the same shape and form have been found and published on an international website called Roots. The same website also confirms that these photos are actually a view of the replica Angkor Wat temple built by France during the International Colonial Exhibition in 1931. The following screenshot is captured from the above website that states in English as “French replica of Angkor Wat during the 1931 Exposition Coloniale de Paris from an album by Marcel Braun”.
The John Coulthart website also published views of a replica of the Angkor Wat temple complex built in Paris, France. John Coulthart is known as an artist and painter, a British writer and graphic designer who produced many books and posters. The screenshot photo below was captured from the website that shows the view of the replica of Angkor Wat in Paris in 1931.
The below screenshot was captured from the website which shows an aerial view of a replica temple of Angkor Wat built in France.
John Coulthart Link | Archived Link
The construction of a replica of Angkor Wat was also advertised and published on the Angkor DataBase website, which featured an overall view of the temple during construction and after completion. The following screenshot is captured from the above website that states in English as “Angkor Wat Replica In Vincennes for the 1931 Colonial International Exhibition, Paris”.
The following image is an overview of the construction site of the replica Angkor Wat temple in Paris, France.
Angkor DataBase Link | Archived Link
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You may find the details of this fact-check in Khmer language here as well.
Conclusion
Fact Crescendo Cambodia has found that the photo attached with the claim above was misleading. They are not the real Angkor Wat temple in Siem Reap, Cambodia. These photos of the ancient temple are actually the replica of Angkor Wat temple that was built during the Colonial Exhibition in Paris, France in 1931.
Title:A Replica of Angkor Wat Temple Factually Built in France
Fact Check By: Kakada SimResult: Misleading
