Antique Burmese Marble Nat Riding Horseback
AGE: – 19th Century
CONSTRUCTION: – Marble
HEIGHT: – 48cm
WIDTH: – 46cm
DEPTH: – 16cm
WEIGHT: – 19.10 kg.
#869 – PRICE: CONTACT
This impressive Antique Burmese Marble Nat Riding Horseback is one of the thirty-seven Nats mentioned in Burmese folklore, myth, and legend known as Minye Kyawswa, the son of King Minkhaung of Ava whose fight against the Pegu King Razadarit to restore the Pagan Empire ended in defeat.
Legend has it, that after the fall of Pagan the kingdom broke up into various petty kingdoms after which two new kingdoms emerged. Ava in Upper Burma and Pegu in lower Burma. King Minhkaung (1401-1422 A.D.) ruled the northern kingdom of Ava whilst King Razadarit (1368-1421), the ninth King of the Hanthawaddy Pegu Kingdom ruled the lower part of Burma.
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This marble sculpture is probably representative of
King Minhkaung’s son, Minye Kyawswa, born in 1391, he was a brilliant soldier and took part in a campaign at the early age of thirteen. He led the life of a professional soldier and was known to be a hard drinker.
Minye Kyawswa became the commander-in-chief of the Burmese army in 1409 and won a series of victories. In 1417 he was taken prisoner after being severely wounded and died shouting in defiance with his last breath.
Legend and myth surrounding King Minkhaung and his son Minye Kyawswa’s struggles against Razadarit have entitled them the honor of being included in the pantheon of thirty-seven Burmese Nats, he is also known as Maung Minbyu as well as Min Kyawzwa, depending on which version of the story one is reading.
There is a small hairline crack on the ear of the horse, crack on left foot (could be a fissure in the marble), and the sword missing from the outstretched hand.