Southeast Asia, Cambodia, Khmer Empire (Angkor culture), ca. 10th to 12th century CE. A buff grey sandstone statue of a young man, finely carved in the classic style of the Khmer. He wears a sampot, a long rectangular cloth worn around the lower body that is the 1500 year-old traditional dress of Cambodia; here it is finely rendered, giving the appearance of gauzy drapes and folds where it meets at the center. The carving goes fully around the body. Above that, he is unclothed. He stands facing forward, with his legs straight down from his body. His torso is finely rendered, with clear musculature and lifelike curves, suggesting someone youthful and athletic. Size: 7.9" W x 15.5" H (20.1 cm x 39.4 cm); 21.35" H (54.2 cm) on included custom stand.

Khmer art moved away from Indian styles in the 7th century CE to encompass its own framework; one example of this seen here is that this statue is carved in the round, rather than as a relief on a stela, which was common with Indian and Javanese Hindu and Buddhist sculptures that were previously influencing Cambodian art. The broken arms on this statue, and on so many others from the Khmer, are a testament to the fragility of this remarkable craftsmanship. From this, we can infer that Khmer sculptors would have desired their artwork to be viewed from all sides, and thus placed in the center of temples rather than against a wall. While this artwork was religious - priests supervised its execution - its realism is unmistakable and some scholars believe that gods and goddesses were portrayed with the features of individual members of the royal court. This sculpture and others like it would have both emphasized the power of the monarchy and given high ranking people joy - after all, who wouldn't want to see themselves sculpted by the finest artisans in stone, compared to a god?

Provenance: private East Coast, USA collection

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#134999

Piece has missing arms, head, and lower legs. Bottom of sampot waist band is lost. Some chips, nicks, and scratches on surface commensurate with age, especially around the belly button. Nice root marks on upper part of the torso and excellent preservation of details.