Standing Four-Armed Vishnu

Standing Four-Armed Vishnu

An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art

This distinguished example of the pre-Angkor style comes from the Zhenla kingdom in the Mekong Delta of South Vietnam. It preserves the flavor of Indian sculpture, particularly in the full, round forms of the face. Vishnu's headdress is the orthodox high miter. He holds a conch (shankha) in his raised left hand and a war discus (chakra) in his right. His lowered left hand rests on the remains of a mace (gada). Originally, there were structural supports between the sides of the miter and the upper emblems. A portion of one is still visible on the right side of the miter.

Asian Art

An exhibit at Metropolitan Museum of Art

Standing Four-Armed VishnuStanding Four-Armed VishnuStanding Four-Armed VishnuStanding Four-Armed VishnuStanding Four-Armed Vishnu

The Met's collection of Asian art—more than 35,000 objects, ranging in date from the third millennium B.C. to the twenty-first century—is one of the largest and most comprehensive in the world. Each of the many civilizations of Asia is represented by outstanding works, providing an unrivaled experience of the artistic traditions of nearly half the world.