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Antique Khmer Style Stone Koh Ker Style Yaksha Monkey Temple Guardian - 46cm / 18"
Measures (Height) 46cm/18"
An antique Khmer style stone Yaksha or Guardian in the Koh Ker style.
The Yakshas are a broad class of nature-spirits, usually benevolent, but sometimes mischievous or capricious, connected with water, fertility, trees, the forest, treasure and wilderness. They appear in Hindu, Jain and Buddhist texts, as well as ancient and medieval era temples of South Asia and Southeast Asia as guardian deities.
In Hindu, Jain, and Buddhist texts, the Yaksha has a dual personality. On the one hand, a Yaksha may be an inoffensive nature-fairy, associated with woods and mountains; but there is also a darker version of the Yaksha, which is a kind of ghost that haunts the wilderness and waylays and devours travellers, similar to the raksasas.
This impressive guardian figure represents a monkey-headed Yaksha, of the same type of animal headed Yaksha that can be seen among the guardian figures at Banteay Srei. Shiva had a host of Yaksha like creatures with both animal and human features under his command.
As is traditional, this image of Yaksha is defined by bulging eyes. The Yaksha has a single arched eyebrow, wide open mouth and pendulous earrings dangling from his ears. His chignon and tightly banded hair are in typical Koh Ker style. The size of the head suggests that it may once have served as a guardian figure.
Scholarly Reference:
New York Metropolitan Museum Collection - Accession Number: 1987.142.15 Christie's Auction House - Sale 13482 (May 2016) - The Dani & Anna Ghigo Collection:Part I: South East Asian, Himalayan and Indian Works of Art
Provenance: Ex- private London Collection. All items are guaranteed to be as described. A Certificate of Authenticity will accompany all purchases upon request.
The perfect traditional in appearance sculpture to bring serenity and timeless style to you home, office or sacred space.
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