Dimensions: Height 19 cm Wide 10 cm Depth 5 cm

Weight: 1314 grams with base

Cast in bronze, the Buddha seated in meditation upon the coiled body of the naga king Muchalinda, his hands resting in dhyana mudra. The serene figure is backed by a large leaf-shaped aureole richly decorated with the seven-headed serpent spreading its hoods in a protective canopy above the Buddha. The face displays the characteristic Khmer features of almond-shaped eyes, gently arched brows and a composed expression. The sculpture is covered with an attractive malachite-green patina acquired over centuries.

Historical Background

The image of the Buddha protected by the naga king Muchalinda is among the most important iconographic types in Southeast Asian Buddhist art. According to Buddhist tradition, shortly after attaining enlightenment, the Buddha remained absorbed in meditation when a violent storm arose. The naga king Muchalinda emerged from beneath the earth, coiling his body beneath the Buddha to form a throne while spreading his multiple hoods above him as shelter.

This imagery became especially popular in the Khmer Empire and later in the Lopburi Kingdom of present-day Thailand during the 12th and 13th centuries. The naga held profound significance in Khmer religious thought as a guardian spirit associated with water, fertility, kingship and the mythical origins of the Khmer people. Images of the Muchalinda Buddha therefore combined Buddhist symbolism with indigenous Southeast Asian beliefs, creating one of the most distinctive sculptural forms of the region.

Bronze figures of this type were placed in temples and shrines as objects of devotion and protection. The present sculpture reflects the artistic exchange between the late Khmer Empire and the Lopburi tradition, characterised by elegant modelling, restrained facial features and the monumental treatment of the protective naga canopy.