The most important stone inscription unlocking the history of the Khmer Empire was recovered more than a century ago at Sdok Kok Thom, a small Khmer temple in what is now Thailand. Stories in Stone recounts the long efforts to decipher the 340-line message, which was carved around the year 1052 AD.

John came to know Sdok Kok Thom in 1979, while reporting on the great refugee exodus from Cambodia into Thailand following the overthrow of the Khmer Rouge. A large camp had sprung up near the temple, which at the time was ruined and largely untended. The black and white photos below date from that period.

In recent years, the temple has been restored and rebuilt by the Thai government.