Dome

Damnak Chan (administrative offices, constructed 1953), royal coat of arms in the gable end; The French protectorate was established in 1863; in 1865 the royal palace was established in Phnom Penh. Originally built of wood in the 1870s, the palace was rebuilt in more durable materials by King Sisovath (reigned 1904-1927). Work started in 1907 and the palace was inaugurated on 16 May 1919. Its architecture was purely traditional, with layered roofs, ridge-poles ending in double curves, pediments with curves and counter-curves and multicoloured, varnished, tiling. The whole could have been an illustration for the descriptions of the monuments of Angkor at the end of the 14th century [known as Angkor Vat style] by the Chinese chronicler Zhou Daguan. The complex is divided by walls into three main compounds, on the north side is the Silver Pagoda (Vat Peah Keo), to the south side is the Khemarin Palace and the central compound contains the Throne Hall. Source: Grove Art Online; http://www.oxfordartonline.com/ (accessed 6/4/2012)