Preah Neang Deví in Khmer art

Under the influence of the two great religions, Khmer art evolves into an extremely rich form of religious art. Most of the artistic production, the sculptures in particular, is made of sandstone or bronze. Smaller works of art are used as presentation pieces while larger works are monumental statues considered to be the ‘owner’ of the temples and are often indeed fixed in place.

It must be noted that the Preah Neang Deví carved on temple bas-reliefs have not been included in the present study. Rather our study focuses on the works of art kept in the museum. The Preah Neang Deví statues are either sculptures in the round or small groups making up triads such as the Brahmanic or Buddhist triads.

Female deities may be classified into the following two groups:

-          Deities that represent the wives of the gods, the goddesses, and characterized by identifiable elements such as personal attributes, and image of Amitábha.

-          Deities that symbolize the queens when they are portrayed in the likeness of female monarchs in portrait-statues.

If we consider the Preah Neang Deví from the second group without taking into account their original environment of magnificent temples and living servants, this means the profound meaning of the sculpture has eluded us.

The Preah Neang Deví are not merely symbolic representations of the queens, they also reflect the genius of Khmer artists and the social values of the time (for instance, the absence of nudity), while providing information on the everyday life customs of the time (hairstyles, dress and jewelry).

Khmer art history may be divided into three major periods:

-          6^th-8^th centuries: Pre-Angkorian era. Phnom Da (6^th century), Sambor Prei Kuk (7^th century), Prei Khmeng and Kampong Preah (8^th century) style

-          9^th-13^th centuries: Angkorian era. Kulen, Preah Ko (9^th-early 10^th centuries), Koh Ker, Pre Rup, Banteay Srei, Khleang (10^th century), Baphuon (11^th century), Angkor Vat (12^th century) and Bayon (13^th century) style.

14^th-early 18^th centuries: Post-Angkorian era. A transitional period, during which Brahmanism and Maháyána Buddhism progressively giveway to Theraváda Buddhism, a religious school that, viewed the Preah Neang Deví as the wives of the Bodhisattva; they will not be included in the present document.