Early part of the Xth century, Khu'o'ng My style. Stone. 35 cm. Museum of Fine Arts, Boston.Denman Ross Collection. 30.728.

The sculptures in the round and the bas-relief of the Khu'o'ng My transition style mostly corne from the groups A and B of the My S'on site, group B apparently following immediately group A (Boisselier 1963 a : 155). None of the several damaged depictions of the seated deva were found in situ ; only one was in full round, all the others were against a stele. We can only speculate that the stele of this one was in such poor condition that it was cut down to give it this more attractive, if unusual, appearance of a halo, unless it is an oversimplification of the lotus-shaped halo of a Dông Du'o'ng deva. What remains of the right earring indicates that it was made up of contiguous rings, a Javanese inspired innovation of group A (Boisselier 1963 a : 158). The coiffure, which is the evolution of previous styles that go back to the My So'n E 1 style (Boisselier 1963 a : Pl. I, b) has the third horizontal braid it acquired in group A, but the three vertical curls and the shape of the crown of hair immediately above the forehead are reminiscent of the hair style seen on the Lokeshvara from the My Du'c shrine, still close to the Dông Du'o'ng style (Boisselier 1963 a : Pl. I, f). As opposed to the smooth hairline of group B, the bracket-shapped hairline of this deva is typical of group A, but the beard surrounding the face points to group B (Boisselier 1963 a : 157-158). The features are of course much softer, and the smile more benevolent, but the strength and power this image conveys is also reminiscent of Dông Du'o'ng images. The artist who created this sculpture in the early part of the Xth century was certainly inspired by the features of earlier styles, but because it also shows elements of group A, this is where this sculpture should be placed. (Boisselier 1963 a : 164-165).

"Some Remarkable Cham sculptures in American Museums" Natasha Eilenberg, Robert L. Brown

Article of "La Lettre de la SACHA" n°6, décember 1999, page 5.