Page 193 - Christie's Asian Art Auctions PARIS December 2019

This rare sandstone sacred image is rather well preserved apart from
missing feet and arms. Due to the minute fgure of an Amitabha
Buddha, seated in sattvasana with both hands in dhyanamudra and
placed against his conical-shaped chignon, he can most likely be
identifed as Avalokiteshvara or the bodhisattva of Compassion. In
Khmer art he is better known as Lokeshvara or the ‘Lord of the World’.
Only most known examples have four arms instead of two like the
presented one. Therefore it can not be defnitely ruled out that he
represents another bodhisattva.
The stone fgure is embellished with ornamentations including a
delicate sculpted necklace and heavy ear-pendeloques. This specifc
elaborate ornamentation is seen on various male and female stone
examples of the Angkor Wat period. The sampot secured with a belt
carved with foral musters is in general more known from earlier
examples. During this Angkor Wat period these belts wear mainly
carved with two rows of ovals. The double fsh-tail shaped fanges
falling to the front of his sampot touching or almost reaching its lower
border as well the rather simple conical-shaped chignon are well-
known from twelfth century examples.The face of this bodhisattva is
showing an impersonal, even an almost enigmatic expression, typical
for the Angkor Wat period. Earlier examples display often more softer,
almost spiritual expressions.
Most likely the artist of this fne sculpture borrowed fashion elements
of slightly earlier times which can be found on other published and
discussed stone examples as well. Apparently some of these stone
examples were recorded to be found in present day Thailand in the area
of Phimai which has been a Buddhist stronghold over the centuries.
Thus it is not too far sought to suggest that the presented fgure could
stem from that area, carved in the twelfth century, though with fashion
elements borrowed from earlier styles.
A twelfth century Avalokiteshvara stone fgure, though four-armed and
deprived of any jewellery, is published by P. Pal in Art from Sri Lanka &
Southeast Asia, in Asian Art at the Norton Simon Museum, vol. 3, Yale
University Press, New Haven 2004, plate 156. This four-armed example
displays a very similar sampot, belt and fsh-tail shaped fanges to both
front and back. The author suggests that it is possible that the image
was sculpted in Thailand and had borrowed fashion elements from
earlier periods. A two-armed Lokeshvara example, though transformed
in later times into Shiva, is on display at Musee Guimet, Paris. It
is published by P. Baptiste and Th. Zephir in L’Art khmer dans les
collections du Musée Guimet, Editions de la Réunion des musées
nationaux, Paris, 2008, catalogue number 53.

fg.1. Archive from Spink & Son Ltd., 1969

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