A standing Vaishnavi in sandstone

Baphuon style, 3rd quarter of the 11th century, Angkor, Cambodia

Height: 79 cm Width: 33 cm

This standing figure follows the classical style of Baphuon sculptures from Angkor, with a sharp hairline at the temple of the head and a pleated sampot with a fish-tailed fold tied in an elaborately decorate sash with beaded tassels which wrap around her accentuated hips. Although three-fourths of her attributes are missing, her conch, conical four-tiered chignon, and firm breasts identify her more precisely as Vaishnavi, the cosmic and creative energies of the Hindu deity Vishnu as female personified.