Ancient Indian Colonies in the Far East (Vol. I: Champa; Vol. II: Suvarnadvipa) v2.c21.s8: Chapter IX. Art in Malay Peninsula
Ancient Indian Colonies in the Far East (Vol. I: Champā; Vol. II: Suvarṇadvīpa) v2.c21.s8
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Chapter IX. Art in Malay Peninsula
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The old sanctuaries and sculptures in Malay Peninsula¹, dating from the period prior to its conquest by the Siamese, are not many. Even of the few so far discovered it is not easy to form an accurate idea in the absence of a scientific archaeological publication giving full details and illustrations. This is all the more regrettable, as the few specimens, already known to us, invest this region with a peculiar interest, and raise interesting problems which we are not in a position to solve at present.
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¹ The most important publications, on which the following account is mainly based, are the following (referred to in the following footnotes by the Roman letters). A. Lajonquierre—B. C. A. I., 1909, pp. 188ff. B. Do. —B. C. A. I., 1912, pp. 125ff. C. G. Coedès —I. A. L., Vol. I, pp. 57-72. D. Dr. H. G. Quaritch Wales—I. A. L., Vol. IX, No. I. E. Ars Asiatica, Vol. V.
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We may begin with sculptures (Pl. LXXI, Fig. 2, Pll. LXXII, LXXIII). These are both Brāhmanical and Buddhist. Among the former we may refer to the fine images of Viṣṇu and other deities near Takua Pa, at Pra Narai hill and Phru No,² those of Viṣṇu at Vieng Sra³ and at Srivisay hill⁴ between Bandon and Surat, those of Gaṇeśa and Naṭarāja Śiva⁵ whose place of origin is unknown, and a second Viṣṇu and a Śiva Bhairava⁶ from Vieng Sra.
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² A, pp 233-4, figs 25-6. D, Pll. II, IV.
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³ C, PL. XIV.
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⁴ Ibid, Pl. XV.
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⁵ A, Pl. IV. Fig. II.
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⁶ C, Pll. V-VI.
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Most of the Buddhist images—Buddha and Lokeśvara—come from Caiya, to which we may add two *in situ* in the cave of Phu Khao Ngu.¹ Two bronze images now in Bangkok also originally belonged to Caiya.²
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¹ A, pp. 226, 228; Figs 19, 21-23.
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² E, pp. 17, 56; Pl. 47. C, Pll. III-IV.
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G. Coedès has divided the images into three classes according to the style, *viz.*, (1) Indo-Javanese, (2) Indian, and (3) Local.
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Under the first heading he includes the two bronze images of Caiya, but evidently with some amount of hesitation. It appears to me that there is not sufficient reason to attribute their workmanship to Javanese or Sumatran influence rather than to a direct influence from India. As a matter of fact, the images of Śiva, Bhairava, and Viṣṇu (No. 2) from Vieng Sra which Coedès places in the second category—'very much approaching the Indian prototype'—are less Indian than the two bronze images. I would, therefore, prefer to group the first two categories of Coedès as Indian and recognise only two classes, *viz.* (1) Indian, and (2) Local.
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Some images in Class I, belong distinctly to the Gupta school of Art, *e.g.* the fine sandstone figure of Buddha from Vieng Sra³ (Pl. LXXIV, Fig. 1), the bronze Buddha from Rambutan, and the very beautiful standing bronze Buddha found at Pengkalan near Ipoh, in Perak State.⁴ In this class there are certain images of a very high order of artistic merit. The Viṣṇu image from Vieng Sra (Pl. LXXIII, Fig. 1) has not only a fine modelling but an individuality and strength which easily rank it as one of the best specimens in the whole of Indo-China. The general treatment undoubtedly indicates the influence of Gupta traditions. Its peculiar head-dress, similar to a modern Fez, is found in later Khmer art, and it is reasonable to hold that this element was introduced there through the influence of the art of Malay Peninsula. The image of Phru No⁵ hill (Pl. LXXI, Fig. 2) also belongs to the same style and is of excellent workmanship.
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³ D, Pl. V-1.
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⁴ Winstedt—History of Perak, p. 4.
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⁵ D, Pl. II, 1.
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Lojonquiere even goes so far as to say that it is far superior to any sculpture hitherto discovered in Indo-China.
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The two bronze images of Lokeśvara at Caiya testify to the high level which was attained not only by the art of bronze-casting, but also by the sculpture of the Peninsula in general. The naturalistic treatment, with graceful modelling, and a serene expression are characteristics of these images. The same may be said of the three Brahmanical images found at Phra Narai hill, Takua Pa¹ (Pl. LXXII). All these would rank as some of the best artistic achievements of Indian colonists.
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¹ Good illustrations of these are to be found in D, Pl. IV.
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The second Viṣṇu image and the Bhairaba from Vieng Sra (Pl. LXXIII, Figs. 3-4) although Indian in inspiration and style, already indicate by their rigidity and facial expressions the influence of local factors which led to the growth of an indigenous school of art.
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A comparison of the three images of Caiya, belonging to this local school², with the two bronze images of the same god found in the same locality, would convey an adequate idea of the influence of local development upon what was originally an Indian style. Rigid formalism takes the place of modelling, and we miss the grace and serenity in the expression. Occasionally, however, the artist succeeds, in spite of his limitations, in infusing something of the old spirit.
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² C, Pll. 7-9.
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As regards architecture we have two most important sanctuaries in Caiya, viz., Vat Phra That and Vat Keo.
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The Vat Phra That³, a brick temple (Pl. LXXIV, Fig. 2), stands on a square basement, with sides regularly oriented. The basement, about 6 ft. high, with each side measuring more than 20½ ft., has flat mouldings intersected by eight pilasters on each side.
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³ A, Pl. II. fig. 7, Pl. III. fig. 8. D. Pl. VI-I, B. E. F. E. O., Vol. XXXI, p. 378, Pl. XXXIX, fig. 41.
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The main temple occupies the centre of the basement, at each corner of which is a small detached stūpa. The temple is likewise square in plan with deep projections on sides, that of the east constituting the ante-chamber to the cella. The cella is nearly 3 ft. square, and its walls are plain.
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Externally the walls stand on a moulded base and support a heavy cornice. The projections have also flat mouldings, and heavy cornice supporting a tympanum. The roof consists of three gradually decreasing stories, each of which is a miniature of the main temple including the corner stūpas. Above the third storey is a conventional lotus bud, surrounded by eight stūpas and supporting the tall spire encircled by rings.
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There is an exuberance of Stucco decorations, but they are mostly later additions. Parmentier has already noted that Vat Phra That represents a type of construction which is carved on the bas-reliefs of Barabuḍur.¹ But this is true only of the general plan, not of the decorations.
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¹ Etudes Asiatiques Vol. II, p. 210.
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The Vat Keo² is also a brick sanctuary, but it is in a much more dilapidated condition. The cella is square and approached by an ante-chamber in the east. Corresponding to this ante-chamber there are three chapels on three other sides. As Mr. Coedès has observed, its plan resembles that of Caṇḍi Kalasan. But its architecture "recalls closely the cubic art of Campā and the (Pre-Khmer of archaic type) Prasāt Krahām of Phnom Kulen (Cambodia)." "Thus we have the surprising phenomenon appearing here so unexpectedly of a single building combining some of the basic characteristics of the early buildings of Cham, Pre-Khmer and Javanese styles." Dr. H. G. Wales has justly emphasised the fact that the buildings to which Vat Keo bears strong points of resemblance are among the earliest of Indian colonial types, and that we have in Caiya the survival of very early non-specialized types of Indian colonial architecture¹.
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² D, Pl. VI-3. B. E. F. E. O., Vol. XXXI, pp. 380-4. Pl. XL-XLIV, figs, 42-4.
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¹ D, p. 21. C, p. 65.
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On the northern extremity of the Peninsula, at Pechaburi, there is a group of temples called Vat Kampheng Leng² built in Kāmboja style. Inside an enclosure are three temples in a line, north to south, with two Gopurams on the two sides of the central temple. The temples were originally Brāhmanical, but now contain images of Buddha, though images of Viṣṇu or Garuḍa are still met with.
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² A, pp. 208ff., Pl. I, figs. 3-5.
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By far the most imposing structure in the Peninsula is the Vat Phra That in Nakhon Śrī-Thammarat (Ligor).³ It consists of a group of buildings within an enclosed area. The central structure is a stūpa of the type known in Siam as Phra Cheidi. A square base, measuring 33 yds. each way, supports a number of circular mouldings upon which rests the bell-shaped body of the stūpa. Above it is a square box supporting a high conical structure consisting of a large number of discs gradually decreasing in size, corresponding, no doubt, to the umbrellas.
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³ A, pp. 229ff., figs. 16, 24; B. pp. 148ff. fig. 34. D, p. 22.
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The base of this central stūpa is surrounded by a covered gallery on all sides. In front of the staircase which gives access to the top of the base is a rectangular treasure-chamber.
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The stūpa is situated in a large court-yard 142 yds. long (north-south) and 87½ yds. broad (east-west). In this court-yard are arranged in several lines hundreds of smaller stūpas of the same shape as the central one.
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There are 171 seated Buddha statues in the court-yard. The walls of the galleries which surround the stūpa and the courtyard, as well as those of the treasure-chamber, are carved with relief sculptures. These have been covered by thick layers of plaster. There are also two other smaller structures inside the court-yard. On the whole the Vat Phra That has a splendid and imposing appearance.
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Though the central shrine is undoubtedly Siamese in style, there is a small building in the court-yard (Pl. LXXIV, Fig. 3) which M. Claeys regards as a miniature reproduction of the original shrine. M. Claeys has demonstrated the wide-spread custom that when an old shrine was substituted by a new one, a small miniature of it was preserved in the precincts. M. Claeys has also drawn attention to the fact that the style of this small building recalls the architecture of Caṇḍi Kalasan in Java and the temples of Dong Duong and Mison in Champā. This will appear from the plan and elevation¹.
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¹ B. E. F. E. O., Vol. XXXI, pp. 373ff. For plan see fig. 40. For Elevation, fig. 39 and Pl. XXXVIII. Cf. also D, Pl. VI.2.
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There are a few Brāhmanical temples in Nakhon Sri Thammarat. One of them, Ho Phra Isuon, has been described by Dr. H. G. Quaritch Wales and M. Claeys, both of whom emphasise the strong Indo-Javanese style of the building. Dr. Wales thinks that the style is even more primitive than anything found on the Dieng Plateau in Java, and remarks: "But just as the little colony of Brahmans, who trace their descent from India, exist in this great centre of Buddhism as a survival from an earlier order, so they have preserved in their little temples the memory of an early Indian colonial type of architecture²." Unfortunately, the photograph of the temple, as published by Dr. Wales, does not give sufficient details for an archæological description.
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² D, pp. 22-3, Pl. VII. B. E. F. E. O., Vol. XXXI, pp. 373ff.