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Southeast Asia, Thailand, ca. 6th to 8th century CE. A brown-grey sandstone temple fragment, triangular in shape, carved in relief to show a bearded man wearing a large headdress standing and holding what appears to be the hilt of a sword (the bottom is missing below the guard) with a flared hilt. Around him is a similarly carved relief frame of what appears to be an ornate triangular lintel and twin columns of a doorway. Who is the man? It seems likely that he is Akkhot (also known as Agastya or Agasti/Agathiyar in other regions), a revered poet, sage, and hermit in both Buddhist and Hindu tradition. Hermits, known as rishi, are common subjects of early sculpture in northern Thailand. The rishi are so called because they are the authors of the hymns of the Sanskrit Rigveda. The hat and beard of this figure are the indicators of his possible identity; however, this area and time period remain understudied and so it is difficult to identify him with certainty. Comes with custom stand. Size: 11.75″ W x 15.8″ H (29.8 cm x 40.1 cm); 19.75″ H (50.2 cm) on included custom stand.
Northern Thailand, as part of the Maritime Silk Road, developed far-reaching trading contacts during this period that brought Hindu and Buddhist traditions into southeast Asia. Local rulers took these new religions and began to create larger kingdoms on the basis that they were god kings, known as devarajas, usually incarnations of Vishnu and Shiva. The artistic output at the time reflected this cultural milieu and the introduction of these two religions, with their cosmologies often mixed or placed alongside each other.
Condition: Surface weathering and abrasion; back shows signs of being cut away from another piece, and the bottom terminates in a broken end.
Provenance: private Boulder, Colorado, USA collection, purchased in 1998
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