A large number of bronze representations of the Gods and Goddesses of Offerings are known in the art of Southeast Asia (see Bernet Kempers 1959: pls. 168-171; Krairiksh 1980: cat. 43; Fontein 1990: cat. 66a-k and 67a-f; Chutiwongs 1990: 27-29). They obviously formed part of sacred diagrams representing the hierarchical divine assembly that maintains the World Order, but played subsidiary roles as attending figures. None of such images known to us, however, has the khakkara as attribute. This figure thus seems to belong to a different type of systems than those as far known.
The stylistic features of this image conforms to the usual and standard norms of the Central Javanese period. This could be one of the earliest known depictions of this type of figures in Indonesia and elsewhere. The majority of such finds from maritime Southeast Asia appear to date from the 11th-12th centuries.


See colour illustration