Restoration of Banteay Chhmar temple

In this photo taken Dec. 12, 2011, using a crane, workers move heavy sandstone blocs from a tower within the Buddhist temple of Banteay Chhmar, Cambodia. It’s still entwined in mystery and jungle vines, but one of Cambodia’s grandest monuments is slowly awakening after eight centuries of isolated slumber, having attracted a crack archaeological team and a trickle of tourists. Photo: Denis Gray / AP

In this photo taken Dec. 12, 2011, using a crane, workers move…

In this photo taken Dec. 12, 2011, restoration work continues around one of 34 towers at the Buddhist monastery of Banteay Chhmar in northwestern Cambodia. It’s still entwined in mystery and jungle vines, but one of Cambodia’s grandest monuments is slowly awakening after eight centuries of isolated slumber, having attracted a crack archaeological team and a trickle of tourists. Photo: Denis Gray / AP

In this photo taken Dec. 12, 2011, workers use a crane to move sandstone blocs as they restore one of the damaged towers at the 800-year-old Buddhist temple of Banteay Chhmar in northwestern Cambodia. A team from the US-based Global Heritage Fund and the Cambodian government is reviving one of the masterpieces of the Angkorian Empire. Photo: Denis Gray / AP

In this photo taken Dec. 12, 2011, Cambodian children from a nearby village sit amid the ruins of Banteay Chhmar, a vast, remote temple built around 1200. It’s still entwined in mystery and jungle vines, but one of Cambodia’s grandest monuments is slowly awakening after eight centuries of isolated slumber, having attracted a crack archaeological team and a trickle of tourists. Photo: Denis Gray / AP

In this photo taken Dec. 12, 2011, with the help of a crane, workers gently remove a section of a bas-relief at the 800-year-old Buddhist temple of Banteay Chhmar in northwestern Cambodia. The relief, one of only a few at temples from the Angkor era, depicts a battle in vivid detail. It’s still entwined in mystery and jungle vines, but one of Cambodia’s grandest monuments is slowly awakening after eight centuries of isolated slumber, having attracted a crack archaeological team and a trickle of tourists. Photo: Denis Gray / AP

In this photo taken Dec. 12, 2011, a Cambodian boy leans against one of the mythical figures that guard the approaches to Banteay Chhmar, an 800-year-old temple from the days of the great Angkorian Empire in northwestern Cambodia. The spectacular complex, which still draws few tourists to its remote location, is ringed by a traditional rural village. Photo: Denis Gray / AP

In this photo taken Dec. 12, 2011, Cambodia workers haul an ancient sandstone bloc from a bas-relief at Banteay Chhmar, one of the greatest and least known temples of the Angkorian Empire in Cambodia. The relief is one of several sites at the temple being restored by the California-based Global Heritage Fund and the Cambodian government. Photo: Denis Gray / AP

In this photo taken Dec. 11, 2011, John Sanday, a British conservation architect, walks through a chamber in the vast 800-year-old temple of Banteay Chhmar in northwestern Cambodia. Sanday leads a team from the U.S.-based Global Heritage Fund to restore the monument after centuries of neglect, war and looting. Banteay Chhmar is one of numerous remnants of the once powerful Angkorian Empire. Photo: Denis Gray / AP