Farewell to the King - Mourning Sihanouk in Cambodia
4 galleries
These galleries are all from the week I was in Phnom Penh photographing mourning activities and the cremation of King-Father Norodom Sihanouk.
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22 imagesKing Norodom Sihanouk ruled Cambodia from 1953 until 1970 and played a role in his country's death right up to his death in October 2012. After he abdicated the throne, he was named Cambodia's "King Father," an honorific. He was an enigmatic, complicated man who leaves a checkered legacy. Despite his complicated nature, he was beloved by Cambodians who have come by the hundreds of thousands to wish him a final farewell.
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31 imagesKing Norodom Sihanouk was moved from the Royal Palace to his crematorium today. The crematorium is at the National Museum, next to the Palace, but since this would be many Cambodians last chance to say goodbye to their King, his body was taken in a procession around Phnom Penh.
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31 imagesKing-Father Norodom Sihanouk, the former King of Cambodia, (King-Father is an honorific given to Sihanouk after he abdicated in 2004) was cremated in Phnom Penh on February 4, 2013, following a 100 day Buddhist mourning period. Most of the businesses in the city were closed for the day, only a few restaurants that catered to foreign tourists were allowed to be open. After a chanting service that lasted most of the day, the King-Father was cremated at about 6PM. His cremation was marked by 101 gun salute and fireworks. As the cannons went off, people in the streets broke out in wails of anguish.
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10 imagesKing-Father Norodom Sihanouk's ashes will be scattered across Cambodia. The day after the cremation, some of the ashes were scattered in the Mekong River. There was a ceremony to take the ashes to the river.