Head of an Asura (Demon)
Artist/Culture
Cambodian
Dateabout 1150–1250
MediumGray Sandstone
Dimensions73 x 48.3 x 47.3 cm (28 3/4 x 19 x 18 5/8 in.)
ClassificationsSculpture
Credit LineAlexander H. Bullock and Eliza S. Paine Funds
Object number1972.19
DescriptionLarge head with a grotesque grimace wearing the headdress of the gods. Smooth surface and careful treatment of the hair and headdress, now lost by erosion. Wide flattened nostrils of its broad nose, flattened facial planes, and thick lips of the Bayon style.Label TextThis colossal head was once part of an asura, or a demon, from a large set of statues that lined a causeway leading up to the entrance of one of the many temple complexes built during the time of Khmer emperor Jayavarman VII (b. 1125?–1218). These causeways would have gods on one side, with peaceful faces, and demons on the other, with wrathful faces. Collectively, the figures illustrate the Hindu myth of the Churning of the Ocean of Milk, in which the gods and demons hold the giant serpent, Vasuki, in their arms in a tug-of-war to obtain amrita, or “the nectar of immortality”. These mass-produced figures, with heads and bodies created separately, acted as guardians of the temple complex, conveying a sense of authority through their super-human scale and athletic bodies. Jayavarman VII erected more temples than any other ruler. Over the thirty-seven years of his reign (1181–1218), he orchestrated a grand program of constructing elaborate, multi-storied complexes that harmoniously combined Hindu and Buddhist iconography. ProvenanceMuseum purchase from Peter Marks, New York, NY;
On View
On view
