? A LARGE SANDSTONE FIGURE OF UMA, ANGKOR WAT STYLE Expert authentication: Dr. Chang Qing has authenticated this lot, identifying its iconographic and stylistic characteristics as typical of Khmer Empire images found in present-day Cambodia. A notarized copy of Dr. Chang’s expertise dated 28 June 2020, in the State of New York, accompanies this lot.
Dr. Chang holds a Ph.D. in Art History from the University of Kansas and has held prestigious positions, including post-doctoral fellow at the Metropolitan Museum of Art and senior research fellow at the Freer and Sackler Galleries of the Smithsonian Institute. He has conducted extensive research in China, participating in archaeological excavations at various historical sites. Dr. Chang is the author of several influential works, including Compassionate Beings in Metal and Stone: Chinese Buddhist Sculptures from The Freer Gallery of Art (2016) and Light of the Buddha in the Desert: Essays on Mogao Grottoes in Dunhuang from 5th-14th Centuries (2012). He is currently a professor at Arts College, Sichuan University.
Expert’s note:
The present lot represents the best of Angkor Wat period sculpture, a chapter in Khmer art sometimes overlooked for its deliberately archaic style. While works from this era are sometimes said to lack the sensuality of the preceding Baphuon period and the spiritual intensity of the following Bayon period, the present example rises above. Its finely executed form and jewelry, carved in crisp relief, showcase a level of artistry that firmly places it among the finest achievements of its time.
Khmer Empire, Angkor period, ca. 12th-13th century. Magnificently carved, the female deity shown wearing a sampot secured at the waist with a simple belt with a sash falling in front, her arms gracefully embellished with beaded bracelets, while an intricately detailed necklace accentuates her full chest. Her face shows an impersonal and detached gaze fitting a celestial deity, distinguished by almond-shaped eyes, gently arched brows, a prominent nose, bow-shaped lips, and rounded chin. The hair arranged in a conical chignon behind the flaring tiara, meticulously detailed with beaded and floral designs.
Provenance: The collection of Richard and Ruth Dickes, 1980s. A private collection in New York, acquired from the above via the local trade in 2019. Dr. Richard (1942-2023) and Mrs. Ruth Dickes shared a lifelong passion for Asian art, nurtured through travel, reading, lectures, and regular visits to museums and galleries. Ruth, who served for many years on the Collections Committee of the Brooklyn Museum, and Richard, influenced by his parents—collectors of Asian art with a focus on religious sculpture, Japanese ceramics, and East Asian ink painting—began collecting in the 1970s. They initially concentrated on Japanese ceramics and paintings, later expanding to Chinese, Korean, Indian, and Southeast Asian works. Most purchases were made through dealers in New York City, including Fernando Flores, Frederick and Joan Baekeland, James Lally, and Joan Mirviss. At its height, the Dickes Collection comprised several hundred objects, ranging from the Neolithic period to the twentieth century. They were active patrons of and donated parts of their collection to major cultural institutions including the Brooklyn Museum, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Princeton University Art Museum, the China Institute, Asia House, the American Friends of the Shanghai Museum, and LACMA.
Condition: Very good condition, commensurate with age. Expected wear, obvious losses, signs of weathering and erosion, old chips, nicks, scratches.
Weight: 31.8 kg (incl. stand)
Dimensions: Height 56.5 cm (excl. stand), 68.1 (incl. stand)
Mounted on an associated metal stand. (2)
Angkor Wat, erected by King Suryavarman II (r. 1113 - circa 1150), the great ruler of the Khmer empire, was built both as the royal temple complex dedicated to the Hindu deity Vishnu and as the ruler’s personal mausoleum. The magnitude of this building program underscored the intention of the King to establish his authority and strength as a leader. By linking himself directly to Vishnu, the deity associated with restoring cosmic order, he legitimized his spiritual and worldly power. This is captured aesthetically in the sturdy figural proportions and powerfully frontal images created during his time, evident here in this present sculpture of Vishnu.
The style of Angkor Wat seen here harks back to the earlier styles of the Koh Ker and Pre Rup traditions of the tenth century, rather than the preceding style of the Baphuon period. Lerner states that for a “ruler concerned with martial campaigns and responsible for such a gigantic personal monument as Angkor Wat, the Baphuon figural style may have appeared too consciously unheroic and sensuous.” (see Martin Lerner, Ancient Khmer Sculpture, New York, 1994, p. 46). Instead, rather than soft contours, each element has weight. The sampot for example is made of thick material, and the face and crown show solidity too, with the broad face firmly supporting the conical diadem decorated in a linear and formulaic patterning.
Literature comparison:
Compare a related earlier bust of Shiva, dated 9th century, excavated from Damdek, Cambodia, and now in the Tokyo National Museum, collection reference number TC-391.
Auction result comparison:
Type: Closely related
Auction: Christie’s Amsterdam, 31 October 2000, lot 135
Price: NLG 128,722 or approx. EUR 104,000 converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writing
Description: A Khmer, Angkor Vat style, sandstone figure of Lokeshvara, late 12th century
Expert remark: Compare the closely related modeling, manner of carving, and size (56 cm), as well as the state of preservation. Note the different subject.
Auction result comparison:
Type: Closely related
Auction: Christie’s Amsterdam, 31 October 2000, lot 167
Price: NLG 93,616 or approx. EUR 75,500 converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writing
Description: A fine Khmer greyish sandstone figure of Uma, Angkor Wat style
Expert remark: Compare the closely related modeling, manner of carving, and subject with similar pose, facial features, jewelry, hairstyle, and crown. Note the size (73.5 cm) and different state of preservation.
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