Stegosaurus Dinosaur Carved in Ancient Temple, Cambodia: Fact Check

Some people said the area of the stegosaur appears lighter than its surroundings; suggesting it could be carved recently (see the picture above). The fact of the matter being, that part of the carving was actually cleaned by the famous photographer Michael Freeman. In a closer look at the image, you can see the “patina” is still visible in some regions like under the tail, chin, and in front of both legs. Moreover, the ancient Ta Prohm temple is classified and protected under the UNESCO World Heritage Sites list. And as a matter of fact, the same author and photographer Michael Freeman, whose work has been published in leading magazines like GEO, The Sunday Times Magazine, the Smithsonian, and Life, has said in his book ‘Angkor: Cities And Temples‘ that the carving in Cambodian temple was “an animal which bears a striking resemblance to a stegosaurus“.

Map of Known Dinosaur occurrences on Earth — Known Dinosaur occurrences on Earth

Cambodia map — Known Dinosaur occurrences on Earth

Possible Facts

The website mnh.si.edu related to Smithsonian Institution shows a database of all known Dinosaur occurrences on Earth, i.e. locations where dinosaur fossils have been found. Note that the region marked in the Cambodia map (picture above) actually shows the Angkor, Khmer region in Cambodia, suggesting there must have been occurrences of Dinosaur fossils even during the Khmer reign. Considering these aspects, some theorists suggested the possibility that ancient Khmers (Hindus) could have come across a fossil of a Stegosaurus, and the artist who carved the structure on Cambodian temple wall could have made an approximate model of it.

Picture of Ta Prohm Temple in Cambodia — Ta Prohm Temple in Cambodia

Screenshot of related article on Smithsonian Institution website — Ta Prohm Temple in Cambodia

So the mysterious carving inside the 800 year old ancient Hindu Ta Prohm Temple in Cambodia does depict a Stegosaurus. It is possible that ancient Hindus in the Khmer era already knew about the existence of Dinosaurs long before the westerners discovered them.