A SANDSTONE HEAD OF AVALOKITESHVARA, PRE-ANGKOR PERIODKhmer Empire, late 7th – early 8th century. Well carved, the serene face with almond-shaped eyes, round pupils, a ridged brow centered by a neatly incised spiral mark representing the urna, full lips forming a calm smile, and a thin wavy mustache. The hair is piled up into a high chignon centered by an image of the Buddha Amitabha.Provenance: From the collection of René Ronveaux (d. 1991), Belgium, probably acquired in the 1970s, and thence by descent in the same family. A copy of a provenance statement, written and signed by the previous owner, dated 8 December 2022, confirming the provenance stated above, apanies this lot.Condition: Very good condition,mensurate with age. Wear, losses, minor structural cracks, nicks, scratches, signs of weathering and erosion, encrustations.Weight: 5,986 g (excl. stand) and 7,569 g (incl. stand)Dimensions: Height 26 cm (excl. stand) and 31 cm (incl. stand)Literatureparison:Compare a closely related sandstone head of Avalokiteshvara, 22 cm high, dated to the last quarter of the 7th century, in the Musée Guimet, Paris, accession number MA2554, exhibited in The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Lost Kingdoms: Hindu-Buddhist Sculpture of Early Southeast Asia, 5th to 8th Century, 14 April to 27 July 2014. For aplete figure of Avalokiteshvara from the Battambang area, see Garnier and Nafilyan L'art Khmer en situation de reserve, Paris, 1997, no. 89.