God Vishnu

Keywords : Vishnu, Narai, Bangkok National Museum

Artwork alternative name	Phra Narai
Site common name	National Museum of Phra Nakhon
Type of artwork	Sculpture
Sub district	Phra Borom Maha Ratchawang
District	Khet Phra Nakhon
Province	Bangkok
Region	Central
Country	Thailand
Geographic Coordinates Decimal degree	Lat : 13.7576 Long : 100.492222
Geographic Coordinates UTM	Zone : 47 P Hemisphere : N E : 661329.97 N : 1521418.09
Place of artwork	It is exhibited in the exhibition room of the National Museum of Phra nakhon.

History of production	No written evidence regarding the sculpture was found. However, the attributes of the sculpture are comparable to the Pallava dynasty of 12th-13th. Therefore the sculpture is hypothesized to be contemporary.
Production process	Stone Crafted
Conservation	found at Wat Wiang Sra, Ban Na District, Surat Thani.
Art	The sculpture is in the standing posture on the base wearing the cylinder shape crown which is the distinct characteristic of the early style of Vishnu in Thailand and similar with Vishnu of Pallava Dynasty Art. The sculpture has 4 arms as follow the conventional Iconology of God Vishnu.The front right hand lies down to the belly level, hypothesized to held the clod before but has been broken off. The front left hand hold the mace but the mace part has been broken and only the dandle is left. The. The back hands are broken off. When compare to other Vishnu sculptures, it is hypothesized that the left hand would held Chakra and the right hand hold Shankha according to Vishnu iconology. This statue is of Pallava Art. The upper body is naked while the lower part wears Tothi or the thin panung. The piece of long cloth is tied around the hip through the thigh. The sculptor who crafted this statue might be worried about it being fragile, he made the front arms attached to the mace and the tothi. Moreover, the front pleat of the brocade is long down to the base which make the statue has 5 points to carry the weight; the 2 feet, the front pleat, the seam of body cloth and the mace.
Key academic information	It is the sample of the early type Vishnu Sculpture in the region and in Thailand. The sculpture is in good condition.
Period	Historical Period
Art period	Srivijaya
Age	12th-14th Buddhist Century
Religion	Brahmanism-Hinduism
Religion and belief	Hinduism
Related artwork	Vishnu Sculpture from Khao Srivichai, Phunphin District, Surat Thani

Type of License	Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs (CC BY-NC-ND)
Rights	Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn Anthropology Centre
Date of record creation	2016-10-13
Record creator	Rungroj Thamrungraeng
Bibliography	Piriya Krairuek. Art History of Thailand: Student Handbook Edition. Bangkok : Amarin Printing, 1985. Piriya Krairuek. Southern Art before 19th Buddhist Century. Bangkok : Fine Arts Department, 1980. O'Connor, Stanley J., Hindu Gods of Peninsular Siam. Ascona: Artibus Asiae Publishers, 1972.