Sophia University team finds Kannon pillar in Cambodia
Yomiuri Shimbun , August 25, 2001

Tokyo -- A team of researchers at Sophia University said Friday it had excavated a stone pillar with numerous images of a Buddhist deity dating back to the 12th century in the Angkor ruins in Cambodia.

The square pillar is decorated with about 1,000  small carvings of Kannon, an important Boddhisatta in Buddhism, the team led by Prof. Yoshiaki Ishizawa said.

The pillar was excavated in Bantay Kdei, the ruins of a Buddhist temple complex in northwestern Cambodia that is thought to date back to the late 12th century.

Discovery of such a large number of Buddhist carvings in the Angkor ruins is very rare, and the research team said it was a precious historical finding that points to the proliferation of the religion in the region at the time.

According to the researchers, the pillar is 45 centimeters across and 110 centimeters tall. It was excavated from a site about one meter underground along with 30 Buddhist statues.

Though the whole of the pillar has not been dug up, the researchers confirmed finding 252 curved images of Kannon, each of which measures 3.5 by 3.5 centimeters, on one of the four sides, estimating that it has 1,008 images on all four sides.

Ishizawa said, "Discovery of the stone pillar in addition to many statues proved that Buddhism had attracted many followers and been popular among the people during Jayavarman VII's reign."

Bantay Kdei is believed to have been constructed by king who was an enthusiastic follower of Buddhism in the early years of the Angkor dynasty.