CONSERVATION PROJECT OF NANDIN HALL IN THE ARCHAEOLOGICAL ZONE OF THE VAT PHOU UNESCO SITE IN LAOS

This work is the result of extensive surveys and analytic technical evaluation of the structural behaviour for the future conservation of the Nandin Hall monument. The temple is located in Laos, exactly in the Vat Phou archaeological area (World Heritage Site in 2001), and is connected to Angkor (Cambodia) by an ancient imperial road, 250 km long. The temple complex of Vat Phou was mostly erected at the foot of the Lingaparvata Mountain and 5 km west of the Mekong River. On the left of the central pathway, one can see the remains of a small building said to be dedicated to Nandin. This rectangular building is in sandstone, with pillared porches at its north and south sides. Its original destination is also unknown; it may be connected to the old Khmer road, of which it marks the end very precisely. The ground survey (2006-2007) led to a comprehensive and detailed mapping of the Nandin Hall and territorial context; whereupon it decisions could be taken concerning its conservation project. The temple is built with sandstone blocks, with dry joints (no mortar), which over the time have come loose, due to static-disrupting phenomena and events. Nandin Hall foundations are in poor condition, subjected to differential soil settlements which have caused structural damage.