Page 80 - 2020 December 10 Christie's Paris Arts of Asia Chinese Art

PROPERTY FROM AN IMPORTANT BELGIAN
COLLECTION
84
IMPORTANTE STATUE DE DIVINITE MASCULINE EN
GRES
CAMBODGE, KHMER, EPOQUE ANGKOR VAT,
XIIEME SIECLE
Il est représenté debout en samabhanga, le torse nu. Il est vêtu
d'un sampot plissé maintenu à la taille, un pan rabattu sur le côté
gauche, un double pan en forme de queue de poisson retombant
sur le devant, un autre pan en forme de papillon à l'arrière.
Hauteur: circa 110 cm. (43º in.), socle
€100,000-150,000 US$120,000-170,000
£91,000-140,000

PROVENANCE:
Claude de Marteau collection, Belgium, acquired with Wiesen
Antiques, Bangkok, 17 February 1969.
Acquired by the present owner on 19 January 2007 from Claude de
Marteau.
A SANDSTONE FIGURE OF A MALE DEITY
CAMBODIA, KHMER, ANGKOR WAT PERIOD, 12TH CENTURY
柬埔寨 高棉帝國 吳哥窟風格 十二世紀 砂岩男神身像
來源:
比利時著名藏家Claude de Marteau舊藏, 于1969年2月17
日購自曼谷古董商Wiesen Antiques
現比利時重要藏家珍藏，于2007年1月19日購自Claude de
Marteau先生
This figure dates from the Angkor Wat period, in the twelfth
century, when the Khmer Empire was at its territorial zenith. This
starts with the reign of Suryavarman II (r. 1113-1145), who ordered
the construction of Angkor Wat, the largest temple of the Angkor
period, dedicated to Vishnu. The last great king of the period,
Jayavarman VII (r. 1181-1218), expanded into the territories of the
Champa to the east. Jayavarman VII also adopted Mahayana
Buddhism as the official state religion, replacing the cult of
Vishnu which had predominated in the Khmer Empire for previous
centuries.
Stylistically, the sculpture of the Angkor Wat period is marked
by a return to the somewhat angular and upright modeling of the
periods preceding the Baphuon style of the eleventh century. This
angularity can be seen in the wide shoulders and hips of the upper
torso, as well as in the drapery of the sampot, which sits roughly
straight across the hips, and in the fish-tail folds which fall in heavy
vertical pleats, in contrast to the earlier Baphuon period in which
the drapery is full of curling flourishes.
The present figure is expertly modelled, suggesting an elite
commission. The range of geometric and ornamental forms that
decorate the garments is testament to the complexity and detail of
Khmer craftsmanship that persisted throughout the empire. The
short sampot is arranged in multiple patterns, including tightly
spaced vertical pleats around the right leg enhanced by a fishtail
fold, and loosely fanned diagonal waves across the left. A double-
anchor fold bridges the thighs reaching the hem of the sampot
which is well known on male sculptures during the Angkor wat
period. The gathered fabric is pulled snugly between the legs from
the verso and then set in an elegant crest on back and front just
below the top of the sampot. The whole arrangement is secured
with a broad belt of double ovals pattern which is characteristic for
the Angkor Wat period.

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