Khmer Empire – Cambodia A copper alloy

Rare bronze Khmer statuette representing Lokeśvara (Avalokiteśvara), the Bodhisattva of Compassion, depicted standing with eight arms. Khmer Empire, Angkor period, Bayon style, late 12th – early 13th century, around 1180–1220. The deity stands frontally on a tall square, stepped base. It is richly adorned with a pectoral, bracelets, armbands and ankle ornaments, and wears a short sampot held by a belt ornamented with pendants. Its eight arms radiate symmetrically around the body and retain several attributes, despite the ancient wear of some extremities. Identification as Lokeśvara / Avalokiteśvara is notably reinforced by the presence, at the center of the high coiffure, of a small representation of Buddha Amitābha, emblematic of the bodhisattva. The treatment of the face, with lowered eyes and serene expression, the coiffure, the costume, compact proportions and Buddhist iconography correspond to the artistic language developed during the Bayon period, particularly under the reign of Jayavarman VII and in the decades surrounding it. The statuette constitutes an interesting example of the small religious bronze statuary of the Angkorian era. Recent archaeometallurgical studies have shown the importance and high level of mastery of bronze production in ancient Cambodia, notably by the lost-wax casting technique. The base of this work is hollow, as revealed by its lower opening. The surface presents an ancient brown to brown-red patina accompanied by green corrosion products, with wear and irregularly distributed incrustations. These alterations are consistent with the age and material history of the object. Small losses and diminutions are visible on several attributes and at protruding parts, but the overall composition, the eight arms, the face, the coiffure, the costume and most of the iconographic details are well preserved. Dimensions: 16.3 × 9 × 4.5 cm. Weight: 535.5 g. Provenance: former private Belgian collection. A detailed study accompanying the work confronts the statuette with several Khmer bronzes held in international institutional collections and with the reference archaeometallurgical corpus devoted to Angkorian bronzes. The attribution and dating result from the macroscopic examination of the work, its iconography, its technique and its confrontation with available scientific and museum corpora. No instrumental analysis of the alloy, radiography or scientific characterization of the corrosion products has been performed. video link: https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fo/030d8ub8tmdb5i6xdtgbf/AOQed1I9CWr9oXSKYVJKyB4?rlkey=8c4l51awjmqifcbfggzozvkcj&dl=0

Estimation:€2,200

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