Angkor Royal Bronzes: Art of the Divine at Musée National des Arts Asiatiques — Guimet

**Vishnou**
Art khmer, époque angkorienne, seconde moitié 11e siècle, Mébon occidental, Angkor, province de Siem Reap, Cambodge, bronze, H.123 cm, Musée national du Cambodge, Phnom Penh, Cambodge
© Thierry Ollivier

Angkor Royal Bronzes
Art of the Divine

April 30, 2025 — September 8, 2025

While Khmer art is known around the world for its stone monuments, recent excavations have provided dramatic breakthroughs regarding our knowledge about its significant bronze statues.

The highlight of this exhibition will be the Reclining Vishnu from West Mebon, an 11th century statue that originally measured over five metres, which was found in a temple in western Angkor. After having undergone scientific analyses and restoration in France in 2024, with the support of ALIPH (International alliance for the protection of heritage in conflict areas), this national treasure of Cambodia will be exhibited for the very first time with restored fragments. Presented with more than 200 pieces, including 126 exceptional loans from the National Museum of Cambodia, the exhibition takes visitors on a journey to major Khmer heritage sites to discover the evolution of bronze art in Cambodia, from the 9th century to modern day.

Angkor, the capital of the Khmer Empire which dominated mainland Southeast Asia for over five centuries, has kept the vestiges of its past glory: monuments of unparalleled beauty and scale. But while the architecture and stone statues of the Khmer Empire temples (9th to 14th centuries) are frequently celebrated, it is often forgotten that these Buddhist and Brahmanical shrines used to host a whole population of divinities and objects of worship made of precious metals: gold, silver and gilt bronze.

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