APSARA National Authority holds a blessing ceremony to reattach the heads and open the eyes of two deva statues at the Victory Gate of Angkor Thom.

On the morning of October 1, 2026, the APSARA National Authority held a blessing ceremony to reattach the heads and open the eyes of two deva statues under the “Return of Souls to Their Origin” campaign at the Victory Gate of Angkor Thom. The ceremony was presided over by Her Excellency Academician Phoeurng Sackona, Minister of Culture and Fine Arts and President of the Board of Directors of the APSARA National Authority, with the participation of Samdech Preah Brahm Rattan Mony Pin Sem, Mr. Flavio Bonetti, UNESCO Representative to Cambodia, Ms. Katherine Diop, Public Affairs Officer at the U.S. Embassy in Cambodia, leaders of the Ministry of Culture and Fine Arts, directors-general, deputy directors-general, representatives of the Siem Reap Provincial Administration, leadership of the APSARA National Authority, and numerous officials and staff.

Her Excellency Academician Phoeurng Sackona, Minister of Culture and Fine Arts and President of the Board of Directors of the APSARA National Authority, stated that the ceremony to reattach the heads and open the eyes of the two deva statues at Angkor Thom’s Victory Gate holds profound significance for the Khmer Great Empire. This event is vital as it returns the souls of Khmer ancestors to safeguard Angkor and preserve peace, given that Victory Gate is a historic site where Khmer kings traditionally conducted major ceremonies, such as coronations and royal departures for battle. Furthermore, the restoration of these deva and asura heads enhances aesthetic beauty, creating a new cultural attraction for national and international tourists while enabling Cambodian citizens to pay homage. Her Excellency Academician Phoeurng Sackona added that the core significance lies in how all the deva and asura statues flanking Victory Gate have endured history’s hardships, glorious eras, and multiple generations of war, continuing to share the joys and sorrows of the Khmer people through all circumstances, even though many statues have lost parts of their physical bodies.

Flanking the Victory Gate of Angkor Thom are a total of 108 statues depicting devas and asuras in the Churning of the Ocean of Milk. Due to generations of warfare and destruction, nearly all of these sandstone heads were lost, scattered across various locations within Cambodia and abroad. However, over many years, the APSARA National Authority and the Ministry of Culture and Fine Arts, with cooperation from friendly nations and organizations such as UNESCO, France, Japan, and the United States, have strived to recover and collect these deva and asura heads—some discovered through archaeological excavations, others retrieved from the Angkor Conservation repository or various museums, and some reclaimed from abroad—to restore them to their original positions. Currently, almost all missing heads have been recovered, leaving only three heads housed in foreign museums, which efforts and negotiations are actively pursuing for their future repatriation.

Mr. Flavio Bonetti, UNESCO Representative to Cambodia, expressed his appreciation for the blessing ceremony to reattach the heads and open the eyes of these two deva statues, describing it as a testament to and veneration of Khmer culture as a World Heritage asset. UNESCO continues to support Cambodia through the ICC-Angkor committee since 1993, taking pride in the extensive Angkor conservation and preservation work conducted jointly with the APSARA National Authority over the past 30 years.

Meanwhile, Ms. Katherine Diop, Public Affairs Officer at the U.S. Embassy in Cambodia, noted that the United States is a key partner under the Memorandum of Understanding on Cultural Property between the Kingdom of Cambodia and the United States. For many years, the United States has contributed to facilitating efforts to repatriate numerous ancient antiquities back to Cambodia, their homeland. Over the years, through cooperation between the two governments, the United States has returned approximately 900 cultural artifacts to Cambodia.

The “Return of Souls to Their Origin” campaign demonstrates that the Kingdom of Cambodia enjoys full peace and security, enabling heritage conservators to restore these statues to their original locations, fully aligned with the new policy vision of the Ministry of Culture and Fine Arts for cultural heritage conservation.