Male deity; Cambodia, Khmer Empire, Pre-Angkor Period, Sambor Prei Kuk Style (600-650).

Male deity; Cambodia, Khmer Empire, Pre-Angkor Period, Sambor Prei Kuk Style (600-650).
Sandstone.
Measurements: 70 x 26 x 12 cm; 76 cm (height with base).
Male deity possibly Shiva, one of the gods of the Trimurti or main trinity of Hinduism. He is the destroyer god, together with Brahma, creator god, and Vishnu, conservative god, although he does not incarnate the destruction without sense, but the one that also allows the regeneration, the change, the rebirth. Together with his consort Parvati (goddess with double aspect: maternal and demon slayer) he is the father of Ganesha (god of wisdom) and Kartikeia (god of war).
The art and architecture of the Sambor Prei Kuk style are characterized by brick and laterite temples, with decorative sandstone elements such as lintels and pediments, and the presence of octagonal towers unique in Southeast Asia. This pre-Angkorian style, which flourished in the 7th century, influenced later Khmer art of the Angkorian period, laying the foundation for the architecture that would be seen at sites such as Angkor Wat.
It is generally accepted that the Pre-Angkor period begins with the fall of Fu-nan and ends, not with the founding of Angkor, which did not take place until the late ninth century, but with the introduction (in the first half of the ninth century) of the rites on which the Angkor monarchy would be based. The oldest (Buddhist) images are not earlier than the middle of the 6th century. The somewhat later Brahmanic monuments (early 7th century and later period) already show some of the traditional characteristics of Khmer architecture. Only a few outstanding examples of pre-Angkorian art exist. This period marks the beginnings of the Khmer world, in which a distinctive personality is gradually asserted, although generally still under foreign influences. Belief in the cult of the "god-king" does not yet exist. However, the art of this period lays the foundations of sculptural symbolism and inaugurates architectural forms that will be reused and improved later. Pre-Angkorian statuary shows an Indian influence, but the anatomical representation is less dramatic.