The mouth of the upper cave is located two-thirds of the way up the hill, approximately 50 m above the Mekong River on a steep slope to the south of the riverside cliff. A continuous path and series of stairs provide access from a separate river landing. Although sometimes quite steep, the stairs on this route (241 steps from the river level at the time of this survey) are in relatively good condition and are kept quite clear of vegetation.
These stairs and the path from the lower cave meet at a junction where a covered eating area has been built to accommodate site visitors.
A short walk away from the covered area is a toilet block. In addition, a garbage dump is situated in a small gully close to the block, consisting primarily of refuse from packed lunches, most notably nonbiodegradable plastics. Exposed to wind dispersal and to wildlife, the dump is having an increasingly negative impact on the visitor areas.
Another covered eating area with an adjacent single toilet block, added in 1993, is located just below and to the north of the upper cave entrance. Wooden tables and chairs are located in the eating areas, but water must be carried up to the site from the river below.
The upper cave has a predominantly level floor, extending for 55 m into the dark interior, and reaches an approximate maximum height of 20 m (Fig. 5). The interior consists of a level and continuous series of caverns and broad passages culminating in two large caverns. As with the lower cave, cave development is limited and currently inactive. The upper cave appears to contain an extensive deposit of accumulated sediments, including pockets of alluvially derived clastic fills and a potentially extensive archaeological deposit.
Figure 5
Approximate cross section of the upper cave.
Figure 6
Entrance to the upper cave, revealing nineteenth-century lintel, recent iron grill-work, and Chinese-style sculpture.
Figure 7
Cave interior with visitor candles, the use of which is damaging the sculptures. Note incense behind the front sculpture.
A considerable time period and occupational history is indicated by the cave's built features. Various brick platforms and wall complexes occur throughout the cave, most notably in side niches and the end caverns. The entrance to the cave has two large wooden doors behind an open iron grillwork grate, topped with an intricately carved wooden lintel; the lintel and doors are reported to date from the nineteenth century. The lintel still contains traces of polychrome paint and gilding but also suffers from much termite attack. Although the iron grate is locked at night, access is still available into the cave through small side openings or over the top of the iron grate. Consequently, the cave is not secure from intruders. The sides of the gates have been stuccoed and contain some relief carving, although much is now missing. A large, Chinese-style Buddha is located outside and to the right of the entrance (Fig. 6). Small niches in the limestone surrounding the entrance contain small Buddha sculptures. Some tree roots have grown around the cave entrance from the forest that grows above it. Several benched garden beds are situated on both sides of a rectangular entrance platform and stairway.
The upper cave is deeper and higher than the lower cave and has a relatively flat floor. The largest and highest portion of the cave, at its distal end, is home to a small colony of bats, their presence being most noticeable from their odor, noise, and droppings. A guardian figure has been carved out of the parent limestone and is located close to the interior mouth of the cave. It is believed that such figures watch over the rains and rivers, in addition to protecting entrances and stairways of shrines (Naenna 1990:3). With the exception of this figure, no carvings of the actual limestone walls are found. However, rock art—in the form of painted or stenciled gilt images, resin applied in low relief, and writing— is found on the rock walls. Some of the written material appears to record the presence of contemporary visitors; attempts have been made to scrub these marks off the walls.
Figure 9
Eroded pathway joining the two caves.
Figure 8
Entrance to the lower cave from the Mekong River.
Carbon residues are found on the walls and ceilings, and lumps of wax are found on ledges in front of sculptural groupings. These are all residues from the use of candles, which both worshippers and other visitors use to illuminate the cave (Fig. 7).
It is unclear what exactly had been restored during the 1932 intervention recorded by the plaque at the entrance to the upper cave. Several sculptures were noted to have been broken and then repaired in the past; many of these repairs in the upper cave are of high quality, although the adhesives used are unknown. In general, the condition of the sculptures in this cave is much better than of those in the lower cave, despite the fact that some of the upper-cave sculptures are older. Based on stylistic attributes and inscriptions, the sculptures date from the seventeenth to the twentieth century, most having been made in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries.
An approximate count of fifteen hundred intact sculptures was made in the upper cave. This number is only an estimate and does not include most of the sculptures toppled over in the rubble or individual figures found in scattered niches.
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