Phnom Penh is the capital and most populous city of Cambodia, sitting at the confluence of the Tonlé Sap and Mekong rivers — a geography Gates describes on camera as shouldering "the banks of the mighty Mekong River." Founded in 1372, the city succeeded Angkor Thom as the national capital in 1434 and earned the nickname "Pearl of Asia" for its mix of French colonial, New Khmer, and Art Deco architecture. By 2019, it was home to more than 2 million people, roughly 14% of Cambodia's entire population. The city's layered, often painful history — spanning French Indochina, Japanese occupation, civil war, and the Khmer Rouge genocide of 1975–1979 — makes it both a cultural hub and a site of profound historical weight. Gates used Phnom Penh as his base of operations in two separate investigations: first as the jumping-off point for his search for a lost Khmer city, and later as the starting point for an inquiry into looted Khmer antiquities and the theft of Cambodia's cultural heritage.
Phnom Penh founded, according to Wikipedia; named after Wat Phnom temple and its legendary founder, Lady Penh.
Phnom Penh succeeds Angkor Thom as the national capital of Cambodia following the fall of Angkor.
Phnom Penh formally re-established as the national capital during the French colonial era.
The Khmer Rouge forcibly evacuates the city's entire population; more than two million people die in the Cambodian genocide.
Vietnam-backed forces take Phnom Penh; the city begins a long process of reconstruction.
Gates investigates Phnom Penh as the gateway city for Expedition Unknown S01E02, "Temple of Doom."
Gates returns to Phnom Penh in Expedition Unknown S12E07, "Lost Tomb of the Viking King," to investigate looted Khmer antiquities.
Phnom Penh's role as a gateway to Khmer history is hard to overstate. In S12E07, American attorney Brad Gordon — introduced on camera as someone leading a worldwide effort to locate looted Cambodian art and antiquities — uses the National Museum's collection to frame the broader investigation. Gordon explains that the Koh Ker style represented a dramatic departure in Khmer sculpture: before it, statues stood rigidly upright with stern expressions; Koh Ker introduced figures that "danced, flew, and smiled." That cultural flowering, and its subsequent looting, is the thread Gates follows outward from Phnom Penh.
Mainstream historians and archaeologists widely regard Phnom Penh as one of Southeast Asia's most historically layered capitals. Its position at the confluence of the Tonlé Sap and Mekong rivers made it a natural trade hub, and the Mekong's role in sustaining Khmer power is something Gates' S12E07 narration addresses directly: "This river was the source of much of their power, allowing for trade and spreading the empire's culture and influence." The city's French colonial-era nickname, "Pearl of Asia," reflects a period of genuine architectural investment that is still visible in the city's streetscape today.
The Khmer Rouge chapter remains one of the darkest episodes in modern Southeast Asian history, and Phnom Penh sits at its center. The Tuol Sleng Genocide Museum — formerly Tuol Svay Pray High School, referenced in the S01E02 transcript — is the most visited memorial to that period. Estimates of Khmer Rouge deaths vary, but figures generally exceed two million, a number Gates cites on camera. Scholarly debate continues around the precise death toll and the long-term psychological and cultural impact on Cambodian society, but the broad contours of the genocide are well documented.
The question of looted Khmer antiquities — the thread Gates pursues in S12E07 — is an active and genuinely contested issue in international cultural heritage law. Brad Gordon's on-camera work represents real ongoing efforts by Cambodia and international partners to negotiate the return of artifacts from Western museums and private collections. The episode does not claim to resolve those negotiations, but uses Phnom Penh and the National Museum as a grounded, expert-informed starting point for asking where these objects went and why.
Phnom Penh's name translates roughly to 'Hill of Lady Penh,' derived from Wat Phnom temple and its legendary founder.
The city was founded in 1372 and became the national capital in 1434 after the fall of Angkor — but lost and regained that status multiple times over the following centuries.
Phnom Penh's entire population was forcibly evacuated by the Khmer Rouge in 1975, leaving it largely uninhabited until Vietnamese-backed forces retook the city in 1979.
The city earned the nickname 'Pearl of Asia' during Cambodia's independence period for its distinctive blend of French colonial, New Khmer, and Art Deco architecture.
Phnom Penh is generally accessible to international visitors, with major airlines serving Phnom Penh International Airport and a range of accommodation options across the city. The National Museum, the Royal Palace, and the Tuol Sleng Genocide Museum are among the most-visited sites and are open to the public, though visitors should check current hours and entry fees locally. The city's riverside districts offer markets, restaurants, and cultural institutions within easy walking or tuk-tuk distance.
Phnom Penh is itself the nearest major city; Siem Reap, the gateway to Angkor Wat, is approximately 300 kilometers to the northwest.
The dry season, roughly November through April, is generally considered the most comfortable time to visit, with lower humidity and reduced rainfall. Gates' own on-camera description of the heat — likening it to "being inside a wood-burning oven that is inside a volcano" — is a fair warning that the wet season months can be intensely hot and humid.
Cambodia National Museum, Phnom Penh
The National Museum in Phnom Penh is the direct on-camera location where Gates and Brad Gordon begin the S12E07 investigation into looted Khmer antiquities — it is the logical next stop from Phnom Penh itself.
Guatemala Snake King Archaeological Sites
Like Phnom Penh, the Guatemala Snake King sites represent a Gates investigation into a powerful ancient empire whose cities were lost to jungle and whose artifacts have faced looting and repatriation challenges.
Kingdom of Kush Pyramid Tombs
The Kingdom of Kush pyramid tombs reflect a similar Gates investigative theme: tracing the legacy of a once-mighty empire through its surviving monuments and stolen or displaced cultural heritage.
Historical data sourced from Wikipedia