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Arts in Southeast Asia Database
SculptureArdhanarishvara
Ardhanarishvara is positioned sitting cross-legged or yokasana supported by a rectangular base decorated with lotus petals. Both arms were broken, so the gesture is unable to be identified. On the right side of the sculpture is Shiva viewed from the flat chest. On the left side is Aumadavi viewed from the visible breast. In addition, the difference between the two can be seen from their dresses. The dress of Shiva is short in at knee length while the one of Aumadavi is at shin length.
PaintingMural Painting Wat Thung Sri Meung
Mural paintings at this Phra Putthabhat hall were painted on the walls, the walls behind the doors and the columns. The paintings were painted in various stories including Vessanatara Jataka, Phra Malai and Buddha’s life. The walls behind the doors were painted with Pajittakumara Jataka, Julapata Jataka and Sin Chai. The columns were painted with Sin Chai stories, lotus bud and intertwined spray patterns. The painting techniques might have been influenced by the royal school of art in Bangkok. The techniques include patterns of the main characters, the palaces, and color status. However, there were also pictures of local folk life in the paintings.
SculptureBuddha image Wat Thung Sri Meung
This Buddha image is seated in the subduing Mara attitude with conical face, small hair buds, large flame-like halo, prominent facial frame, straight-looking eyes, hook-shaped nose, curvy ears and large lips of Lanchang style. The cloth extends to the abdomen and all fingers are of the same length.
PaintingPha Taem Prehistoric Color Painting
It can be divided into 4 groups according to the name and the position of the cliff, they are Pha Kham, Pha Taem, Pha Mon Noi, and Pha Mon. They are all facing the east.1. Pha KhamIt shows a painting of 4 large fishes approximately 0.35 - 1.00 meters long written in a red x-ray style to see the internal structure. In addition, there is a painting of an elephant which is much smaller than a fish (about 13 cm) and a painting of a quadruped.2. Pha TaemThere are paintings all along the cliff. They are 180 meters long and about 4 - 5 meters above the ground. There are more than 300 color paintings at Pha Taem. There are paintings created by the rain gouging into the rock creating some lines patterns; some are straight, some are arranged along a straight line, some oblique, some horizontal. They are from 5 - 15 centimeters in height. The remaining section is only about 80 centimeters long and they are possibly some iconic images. Most of the color paintings in this area are written in red, only some are in black and white divided into small sizes of human paintings and only 10 of them were found.Paintings of animals such as elephants, fish, turtles or snapping turtle, dog, cow, chicken or bird etc. are often painted as large as the real thing, especially elephant and fish whose size is up to 4 meters long and about 3 meters high. There are about 30 animal paintings found and both human and animal paintings are often in motion.Object paintings. This could be a fishing tool called a "Toom" and a crossbow or bow that a person is holding.Geometrical motifs. The motifs are in twisted, wavy or zigzag lines that can refer to “water” or a fish trap. They are also in herringbone, geometric, parallel lines that looks like ricefields, etc.Human hands. There are more than 200 hands, both of children and adults. The colors are red, black, and white. All types of paintings are always drawn together, especially the hands that appear in every painting.Most of the paintings are silhouette. Others are outlines and stick men. The human hand paintings are stencils, imprints, and outlines.3. Pha Mon NoiThis section shows a painting of a person about 1.6 meters tall holding a bow aimed at a four-legged animal, possibly a pregnant cow with the body size of 6.4 meters long. Next to that is a painting of a person about 1.2 meters tall chasing a horned four-legged animal which might be a deer that invaded the ricefields. surrounding this group of paintings are paintings of about 20 hands, both left hands and right hands created by putting the paint on the palm then scraping off some of the paint on the fingers and palms and then imprinting the hand on the wall. Next is a painting of three four-legged animals with bloated bellies and it looks like they are pregnant as well. There is a drawing that is similar to the net of an animal trap and also paintings of connected parallel lines. There are, in addition, 15 human hands paintings arranged in long wavy lines. They are similar to the ones of the first group. Paintings of people and animals were painted in red silhouette. It is noteworthy that all types of paintings at Pha Taem and Pha Mon Noi are related. Whether it is a picture of a person and a cow with hands, fish and hands, ‘Toom’ with hands, geometrical motifs of ricefields, people, and deer with hands, or a painting of a person hunting a cow or a deer.4. Pha MonIn this section, there are paintings of people and animals written in red silhouette.In this first group, there is only a painting of a single person and 11 four-legged animals, possibly elephants, cows, dogs and pigs, or sheep or goats, walking in the same direction. (Except for one animal, possibly a dog that is facing the herd)In the second group, there are paintings of about 10 people drawn in silhouette and stickmen. They all look quite realistic, even their calves are aneurysms. An interesting painting of the Pha Mon is the painting of a person wearing a half-calf length skirt standing with arms akimbo, not sure whether it is a woman or a man. This painting is larger than other paintings. Moreover, they are paintings of the right hands of adults, 2 paintings in stencil, 2 imprinted paintings, and 2 imprinted paintings of children hands. It can be noticed that there are always paintings of hands appearing in all 4 groups of paintings. This could refer to a cooperation in doing an activity such as fishing. cultivating, raising animals, or hunting. This shows that the illustrators might be in agricultural society and they may share common belief in fertility.
