Lintel with a Kala Head
Unknown Artist
ca. mid-10th century
Medium
Sandstone
Dimensions
H. ca. 25 in. (63.5 cm); W. ca. 57 in. (144.8 cm); D. ca. 6 in. (15.2 cm); Weight ca. 300 lbs.
Classification
Sculpture
Culture & Period
Cambodia or Thailand · Angkor period
Department
Asian Art
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Purchase, George L. Lindemann Gift, 1994
Accession Number
1994.111
Art Historical Context
This striking sandstone lintel, carved around the mid-10th century during Cambodia's Angkor period (or possibly contemporary Thai styles), once crowned a temple doorway in the Khmer Empire's heartland. Measuring about 57 inches wide and weighing 300 pounds, it exemplifies the monumental scale of Khmer architecture, where such architectural sculptures adorned sacred structures like those at Angkor. At its center snarls a fierce Kala head—a mythical guardian demon from Hindu-Buddhist lore, often depicted devouring time or warding off evil spirits. Khmer artisans masterfully chiseled the dense s...