The Royal Palace, located between 184th Street and 240th Street, was built in 1866 by the French. The entry is at the Samdech Sothearos Boulevard, formerly Lenin Boulevard
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The Royal Palace

located between 184th Street and 240th Street, was built in 1866 by the French. The entry is at the Samdech Sothearos Boulevard, formerly Lenin Boulevard, not far from the banks of the Tonle Sap river.

Among various buildings within the walls the Throne Hall ranks as most important. This Khmer-style building was erected only in 1917. It is used only on special occasions. Attached to the Throne Hall is a tower, 59 metres high.

South of the Throne Hall are the Royal Treasury and the villa of Napoleon III. This villa was built in 1866, not in Cambodia, but rather in Egypt. There it served the French Empress Eugenie as accommodation on occasion of the opening of the Suez Canal. One year later Napoleon III gave the villa to the Cambodian king as a present.

Silver Pagoda

At the northern area of the palace grounds is the Silver Pagoda. The original pagoda, built in 1866 by King Norodom, was, for the most part, made of wood. In 1962, it was expanded by Sihanouk. The name of the pagoda derives from the fact, that its floor is made of more than 5,000 silver blocks weighing more than 6 tons. When visiting the Silver Pagoda, one should not wear shorts or hats. Entrance fee is two US Dollars per person; anyone bringing a camera is charged another two Dollars; the extra fee for video cameras is five Dollars.

The most important Buddha statue of the temple is, like in Bangkok's royal temple, an Emerald Buddha, which in this case is not made of emerald, but of Baccarat crystal. It dates back to the 17th century.

Behind the Emerald Buddha is another Buddha statue made of 90 kilograms of gold and decorated with 9,584 diamonds. It was cast in 1906.

The inside of the 600-metres surrounding walls of the Silver Pagoda are decorated with murals displaying scenes from the Ramayana epos. East of the pagoda is an equestrian monument of King Norodom - which is actually a monument of the French Emperor Napoleon III. The head of the original statue was removed and replaced with one showing King Norodom.