Expeditions
From his base in Bangkok in 1858, Mouhot made 4 journeys into the interior of Siam, Cambodia and Laos. Over a period of 3 years before he died, he endured extreme hardships and fended off wild animals, to explore some previously uncharted jungle territory.
On his 1st expedition, he visited Ayutthaya, the former capital of Siam (already charted territory), and gathered an extensive collection of insects, terrestrial and river shells, and sent them on to England.
In January 1860, at the end of his 2nd and longest journey, he reached Angkor (already charted territory) — an area spread over more than 400 km²., consisting of many sites of ancient terraces, pools, moated cities, palaces and temples, the most famous of which is Angkor Wat. He recorded this visit in his travel journals, which included 3 weeks of detailed observations. These journals and illustrations were later incorporated into Voyage dans les royaumes de Siam, de Cambodge, de Laos which were published posthumously.
Read more about this topic: Henri Mouhot