A MONUMENTAL SANDSTONE FIGURE OF BUDDHA MUCHALINDA, ANGKOR PERIOD
Khmer Empire, 12th-13th century. Seated on the scaled coils of Muchalinda, his hands in dhyanamudra, richly adorned with jewelry. The face with downcast eyes in a benevolent expression, flanked by long earlobes with pendant earrings, the hair pulled into a conical chignon and secured with a wide tiara, backed by the seven-headed naga hood, the faces well-carved.

Provenance: Collection of Jean-Marc Andral, acquired ca. 1987 in the Bangkok trade. Jean-Marc Andral is a Belgian manager based in Brussels and active in the healthcare industry for over 25 years.
Condition: Good condition, commensurate with age and as expected for a statue of this remarkable size and age. Extensive wear, small losses, minor nicks and scratches, signs of weathering and erosion, structural cracks. The sculpture was broken in several pieces which have been re-assembled after excavation, as visible on the images provided, including additional images on www.zacke.at. Overall displaying impressively well.

Dimensions: Height 121 cm (excl. base) and 140 cm (incl. base)

Muchalinda is the name of a naga sheltering the Buddha from the elements after his enlightenment. When a storm raged and torrential rain fell for a whole week, the king of the nagas, Muchalinda, rose from the earth, coiling its body to form a seat and swelled its great hood to shelter Buddha. When the great storm had cleared, the serpent king assumed his human form, bowed before the Buddha, and returned to his palace. Seven-headed nagas are often depicted as guardian statues, carved as balustrades on causeways leading to main Cambodian temples, such as those found in Angkor Wat.

Mounted on an associated base. (2)

Literature comparison: Compare with a very similar piece in the collection of RMN Grand Palais in Paris, inventory number Ka985.

Auction result comparison: Compare a related sandstone figure of Buddha Muchalinda, 94 cm high, dated 13th century and attributed to Thailand, at Christie's New York in Indian and Southeast Asian Art on 23 March 2010, lot 276, sold for USD 40,000. Compare a related sandstone figure of Buddha Muchalinda, 96.5 cm high, dated circa 12th century and attributed to Cambodia or Thailand, at Sotheby's New York in Indian, Himalayan & Southeast Asian Art on 21 March 2019, lot 919, sold for USD 47,500.