A CAMBODIAN CARVED HARDWOOD ARCHWAY DECORATIVE PANEL
PROPERTY FROM A PRIVATE GERMAN COLLECTION
Cambodia, South East Asia, 20th century

Of hemispherical shape, made of seventeen carved wooden lintels, each of a slightly different size, the central panel decorated with a large kirtimukha mask with large fangs, breathing out flames from the mouth and turning them into vegetal sprays, surrounded by rosette roundels, above the monster three apsaras (female semi-divine beings) holding their hands in prayers, most likely a decorative archway panel for a Cambodian home, serving the purpose of keeping the evil spirits at bay and blessing the guests when going through the threshold, with hanging metal wires at the back, 68cm x 87.5cm.