ethnoarts

woensdag 19 mei 2010

Cambodja

Buddha sheltered by a naga

Angkor period, 12th century Cambodia

Bronze, 32 cm

This sculpture depicts the serpent king Muchilinda protecting the Buddha Shakyamuni from heavy rains. There are numerous extant Cambodian images of this configuration because it was the focus of a cult during the reign of the Cambodian king Jayavarman VII, who ruled the Khmer empire from about 1181 to 1218. Although this scene had been depicted earlier in South and Southeast Asian art, it was the Khmer who popularized it. The reasons that Jayavarman chose to stress the Muchilinda Buddha remain speculative. Snakes were associated with healing, and perhaps because Jayavarman may have been lame, he emphasized healing, as indicated by his construction of hospitals throughout the kingdom.

maandag 9 november 2009

Events - Exhibitions

zondag 23 augustus 2009

Taoist Priest Holding Ritual Items

Taoist Priest Holding Ritual Items
19th - 20th Century, Taoist / Popular Religions, China Lacquer over Wood
This Toaist priest sits on an extremely short backless raised pedestal. His three-quarter length plain red outer robe with long sleeves is bordered in black, clasped above the waist and held open to reveal a dark grey-green long undergarment tied under his stomach with a belt with double sash which extends to the border of his robe.
In his left hand the priest holds a ritual cup, and his raised right hand holds a tablet, an object characteristic of Taoist officials. The cup probably symbolizes an exlir associated with the assurance of long life. His well-carved face has a slight smile with gently curving lips and portrays signs of age in the creases on his forehead and around his lips.
The bung that covers the back cavity is still sealed and probably contains sutras, messages to ancestors and string and sticks representing the innards and bones of the figure, which were placed there during an eye opening ceremony.