# Crowned Head

- By: Thailand
- Date: Mon period, 8th‒12th century
- Medium: Stucco
- Classification: Sculpture
- Dimensions: 27.4 × 22.6 × 17.9 cm (10 3/4 × 8 7/8 × 6 15/16 in.)
- Culture: Thailand
- Credit line: Gift of Marilynn B. Alsdorf
- Museum: [Art Institute of Chicago](https://www.artic.edu/artworks/131008)
- Rights: [Public domain (CC0)](https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/)
- Picture: https://www.artic.edu/iiif/2/63daf5e4-bd57-e4ff-8612-a807cac1c11f/full/!715,984/0/default.jpg
- Who can see it: Tweens profiles and older (museums give no ratings; placed by Invisible Network from the museum's own words)

This slightly damaged stucco head likely depicts a life-sized male deity (deva) and is characteristic of Mon art from central Thailand, dating to the late first or early second millennium CE. The square face, elongated earlobes, half-closed eyes, and prominent features create a calm, contemplative expression. A central ornament held by a beaded band suggests a crowned deity rather than a Buddha. The head was modeled in wet stucco and originally attached to a laterite structure, likely part of a high-relief frieze at the base of a stupa. Similar decorated bases have been found at major Dvaravati sites such as Nakhon Pathom, Khu Bua, Lopburi, and U Thong.

Description © Art Institute of Chicago, CC BY 4.0