ANGKOR: The roof of Angkor Wat’s Eastern Gate has been removed for some much-needed restoration. The APSARA National Authority restoration team held a religious ceremony before removing the stone roof.

Kham Mony, technical officer of the Department of Conservation of Monuments and Preventive Archaeology, said the team had begun removing the stone roof because the stone in the northeast had broken into pieces and collapsed. The roof is the cross-axis that supports the entire roof structure.

Kham Mony added that due to the age of the ancient gate, stones in the northeast corner had crumbled, damaging the roof structure. Restoring the stone roof will once again allow visitors to safely pass beneath it as one of the four main gates leading to Angkor Wat.