Standing Shiva or temple guardian (dvarapala), 10th century, Kingdom of Champa (Vietnam). From the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art: “Located on a major sea route between India and China, Champa, in the central part of Vietnam, played an important role in early Southeast Asian history. This rare sculpture, which may represent either a temple guardian or the Hindu god Shiva, shows the rugged sculpting and distinctive physiognomy, particularly the prominent mustache, that typify the art of the Chams. He wears a short wrap, which features a long front pocket with an oblique upward curve, and a sash. He carries a rosary in his left hand and a club or trident in his right. An early tenth-century date is suggested by stylistic parallels to sculptures in contemporaneous buildings at Mi Son, an important site dedicated to Shiva, as well as further southeast at Khoung My.“
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