Crowned Buddha
Thailand, Khmer period, Lopburi, 13th century
Copper Alloy
22 in. (55.9 cm.) high
Provenance:
The collection of Mrs. Julian B. Herrmann, acquired in the 1920s or 30s.
Thence by descent.
While the origins of the crowned buddha image in Southeast Asia are unknown, it is likely that this serene figure represents the historical buddha donning the crowns and jewels of a royal. The figure displays the vitarkamudra with both hands, indicating that he is in discussion or transmitting Buddhist teachings.
The present figure of Buddha Shakyamuni is a product of the ancient Mon city of Lopburi during the Khmer period of Cambodian rule. The square face and full lips give the face of the present figure a likeness to the last phase of Khmer art of the Angkor period, which centers around the art produced for the Temple of Bayon. Native Thai Dvaravati influences are also apparent in the sculpture’s frontality and balance.
A twelfth-century bronze figure of the Buddha at the Asian Museum of Art San Francisco (acc. 2006.27.20)—which displays a conical crown, a necklace with floral ornaments and pedants, highly-positioned arm bands, a jeweled belt with pendant ornaments hanging from its lower band, as well as an overall symmetrical design—is attributed to either Thailand or Cambodia. Comparison to a seated bronze figure of Buddha attributed to the twelfth or thirteenth century provincial Khmer capital of Lopburi at the Metropolitan Museum of Art (acc. 2019.451), however, provides more conclusive evidence that the present figure originated in the ancient Khmer dominion of Lopburi, in what is now Thailand.