44 was over 800 years old, and in the course of his stonemasonry training he recreated some of those techniques. Nevertheless though, as Mr. Kosugi was only able to speak Japanese at the site, the Cambodian masons at first could not understand him, and it was difficult to teach them. Yet by observing his facial expressions as he spoke, they managed to grasp his intentions, and acted accordingly. Was this an interaction between mind and mind? It was like the mutual anticipation of the moves between a master and his disciples. Regardless of the fact that the stones weighed a few hundred kilograms, Mr. Kosugi nevertheless displayed the technique of Japanese masons, who carried stones 10 meters ahead while skillfully moving their centers of gravity. Regarding the processing of sandstone in particular, he imparted to the Cambodian masons issues such as their stacking, traditional techniques like adjusting stone surfaces into close contact with each other without the use of adhesive and so on, and within a space of 8 years he trained them into becoming full-fledged masons. The restoration of the eastern 100 meters of the Angkor Wat Western Causeway took 4 years, and it was completed in 2007. The local young masons who were trained by Mr. Kosugi exhibited their skills in the masonry work on the western approach, and they did their best. As regards restoration of the precious relief statues of Angkor Wat too, there are challenges we need to be aware of, like the mold on lichens adhering to surfaces of stone walls, that causes deterioration. Black mold in particular causes sludging in sandstones by adhering. It is of the same category as the black mold that appeared in frescoes of the special historic site “Takamatsuzuka Tumulus” in Nara Prefecture. In mold removal work we should pay heed to the fact that we deal with sandstone. This is a lesson learned from cleaning the walls and roof of Angkor Wat, by experts of the Directorate General of the (ASI) Archeological Survey of India.
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