Inscriptional evidence suggests that the Phnom Kulen plateau to the north-east of Angkor in Cambodia was the location of Mahendraparvata-an early Angkorian capital city and one of the first capitals of the Khmer Empire (9th to 15th centuries AD). It was long believed that the ancient city was hidden beneath thick vegetation on a Cambodian mountain, not far from the temple of Angkor Wat. This city was nicely aligned in a massive grid that stretches across tens of square kms. The city-dwellers used a unique and intricate water-management system carved out of natural bedlocks