Massive statue found at Ta Prohm Angkor | Heritage Watch - Preserving thePast, Enriching the Future

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A massive statue has been unearthed recently at Angkor near the eastern entrance to the huge Mahayana temple of Ta Prohm. The statue is that of the Buddha (possibly styled to resemble the Khmer King Jayavarman VII) sitting upon Muchalinda. Muchalinda is a mythical hooded, seven-headed snake that sheltered the Buddha from torrential rains just prior to his enlightenment.

The statue, which is missing both the Buddha head and snake hood, was found entwined in the roots of a tree. In its entirety it is nearly 2.4 m in height and were the head present would probably have been nearly 4m tall.

The Ta Prohm temple, originally known as the Rajavihara, was built by Jayavarman VII and consecrated in 1186 C.E.

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