Preah Thong and Neang Neak

ព្រះ​ថោង និង នាង​នាគី

រូបសំណាកព្រះ​ថោង​​នាង​នាគី
Location	Preah Thong Neang Neakii roundabout, Sihanoukville, Cambodia
Material	Copper (60 tonnes)
Height	statue: 21 metres (69 ft) base: 6.34 metres (20.8 ft) [1]
Completion date	2022

The Preah Thong^[2] and Neang Neakii^[3] statue symbolises the birth of Khmer land, culture, traditions and civilisation of Cambodia. The statue is 21 metres tall, on a pedestal 6.34 metres high (27.34 metres in total), and weighs 60 tonnes, being the largest copper statue in Cambodia, facing the sea.

History

Preah Thong^[4] (Kaundinya I / Y Da) and Neang Neakii^[5] (Queen Soma / Y Ga) are symbolic personas in Khmer culture. They are thought to have founded the pre-Angkorian state of Funan. Much of Khmer wedding customs can be traced back to the marriage of Preah Thong and Neang Neakii.

According to reports by two Chinese envoys, Kang Tai and Zhu Ying, the state of Funan was established by an Indian named Kaundinya. In the first century CE, Kaundinya was given instruction in a dream to take a magic bow from a temple and defeat a Naga princess named Soma (Chinese: Liuye, “Willow Leaf”), the daughter of the king of the Naga. She later married Kaundinya and their lineage became the royal dynasty of Funan. Kaundinya later built a capital, Vyadhapura and the kingdom also came to be known as Kambojadeśa.^[6][7][8]

Modern theories

Newly discovered DNA evidence suggests there is some truth to the Khmer creation mythology. DNA sample taken from a protohistoric individual from the Wat Komnou cemetery at the Angkor Borei site in Cambodia contains substantial level of South Asian admixture (ca. 40–50%).

Radiocarbon dating result on the human bone (95% confidence interval is 78–234 calCE) indicates that this individual lived during the early period of Funan.^[9]

See also

• Funan
• Statue of King Father Norodom Sihanouk

References

1. "Cambodia's largest copper statue, "Preah Thong Neang Neak" inaugurated - Khmer Times". 16 April 2022.
2. "SEAlang Dictionary". www.sealang.net. Retrieved 2023-10-15.
3. "SEAlang Dictionary". www.sealang.net. Retrieved 2023-10-15.
4. "SEAlang Dictionary". www.sealang.net. Retrieved 2023-10-15.
5. "SEAlang Dictionary". www.sealang.net. Retrieved 2023-10-15.
6. Chad, Raymond (1 April 2005). "Regional Geographic Influence on Two Khmer Polities". Salve Regina University, Faculty and Staff: Articles and Papers: 137. Retrieved 1 November 2015.
7. The Asia-Pacific World [1]^{[permanent dead link‍]}. Retrieved March 5, 2013.
8. Sanyal, Sanjeev (2016-08-10). The Ocean of Churn: How the Indian Ocean Shaped Human History. Penguin UK. pp. 82–84. ISBN 978-93-86057-61-7.
9. Changmai, Piya; Pinhasi, Ron; Pietrusewsky, Michael; Stark, Miriam T.; Ikehara-Quebral, Rona Michi; Reich, David; Flegontov, Pavel (2022-12-29). "Ancient DNA from Protohistoric Period Cambodia indicates that South Asians admixed with local populations as early as 1st–3rd centuries CE". Scientific Reports. 12 (1): 22507. Bibcode:2022NatSR..1222507C. doi:10.1038/s41598-022-26799-3. ISSN 2045-2322. PMC 9800559. PMID 36581666.