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Siamese sculpture in the Hermitage The iconography of the walking Buddha, customarily interpreted as the Buddha's descent from heaven, where he preached his teaching to his mother, also embodies the missionary aspect of the Buddha's activities and of Buddhism. Having descent to earth, the Buddha leaves upon it his footprint - a sign that this territory has been included among the "sacred geography" of Buddhism. He is depicted in a moment of motion, as if hovering above the ground. The Hermitage image of the walking Buddha has sadly suffered some losses (No. 2). The art of the Thais of the Far North (Lanna) is represented in the Hermitage by a broad variety of pieces. Particularly interesting are the sculptures covered with different combinations of red and black lacquer and gold (No. 3). Notable among the items in the Hermitage relating to Lanna art are the images with inscriptions. These were made in the Thai Lanna script, predominantly in the Thai Yuan language. These sculptures include two that are dated, adding even greater value to the collection. All the inscriptions were translated and provided with commentaries specially for the 1997 Hermitage exhibition by Dr Hans Penth of the Archive of Lanna Inscriptions in Chiang Mai (Northern Thailand), one of the world's leading experts on the language of the Northern Thais. One statuette depicts Paccekabuddha, a personage very rarely found in Thai art. The inscription informs us that the sculpture was cast to a commission from the married couple Nai Ruea for donation to a temple in year 957 of the Chulasakkaraja era, which corresponds to 1592/93 A.D. (No. 4). The second statuette, on the subject of mahaparinirvana was made specially on the occasion of King Mongkut's institution of the festival of Magha Puja, the Day of Buddhist Saints, and was presented to the temple on that day - "on the day of the first full moon of the year of the Tiger in the Chulasakkaraja era", i.e. 4 February 1855. The inscription expresses the wish that the bun obtained from presenting an image of the Buddha to the temple might serve as "a golden barrier barring the way for sufferings" (No. 5). Among the works belonging to Ayutthaya particular mention must be made of the sculpture of the Buddha Reconciling Relatives (of which sadly only half survives). This is a characteristic example of the established style of Ayutthaya in the 16th century (No. 6). This is evident in the distinctive facial features, in the treatment of the details of clothing seeming to hug the body tightly and in the slightly cold, restrained outward appearance. It was in the Ayutthaya period that depictions of the Buddha seated in a pose of meditation became common. The Hermitage possesses several statuettes of this kind of a seated crowned Buddha (No. 7). One sculpture of the meditating Buddha displays a fairly unusual iconography (No. 8). A vivid example of the transition from late Ayutthaya art to the Bangkok artistic style in the Hermitage collection is a large wooden figurine of an adorer kneeling with hands pressed together in prayer (No. 9). A characteristic example of the mature Bangkok style in the Hermitage is the crowned Buddha Calming the Ocean (No. 10). The gilded image is overloaded with imitations of jewellery made of precious stones copying real royal personal ornaments. Also outstanding among the articles representing the art of Bangkok is a large group of wooden pieces: adorers and fantastic creatures - demons and the Garuda bird (No. 11).
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