This irregularly shaped, heavily tooled, silver box depicts Matchanu, a spirit who lives in a pond guarding the Under World. Matchanu's top half is similar to a monkey and the bottom, to that of a fish. Matchanu’s head, in profile from the left, is fierce looking with bulging eyes, flaring nostrils, a long snout, and an open mouth showing teeth-lined jaws. A semi-circular disk next to his face may represent a large ear. Around the neck, the beast wears a heavy-looking necklace comprised of squares of silver. From this necklace a body ornament hangs in a curved X-shape, rounding the lower abdomen at the bottom and with a four-petaled flower in the center. Matchanu holds a long dagger in the raised, clearly articulated fingers of their left hand, and what appears to be a short branch with leaves in the right hand. At approximately the level of the pubis the fish-form of this creature’s bottom half begins. We see a broad rounded body, that forms the bottom of the box, covered with small scale-like markings. The body curves up both their creature’s left and right sides, and at the left ends in a very broad, short tail-fin scored with parallel, slightly curved, vertical lines. This broad tail curves to course behind Matchanu’s head on our right, thus forming the top edge of this decorative box.
Cambodian
Box with Matchanu,
19th century
Silver
,
7.5 cm (2 15/16 in.)
Object details
Accession number
M21w55.a-b
Primary Creator
Cambodian
Full title
Box with Matchanu
Creation Date
19th century
Provenance
Entered Isabella Stewart Gardner's collection at an unknown date.
Dimensions
7.5 cm (2 15/16 in.)
Display Media
Silver
Web Commentary
Isabella Stewart Gardner kept meticulous records of many of her acquisitions. In keeping with this legacy, object information is continually being reviewed, updated, and enriched in order to give greater access to the collection.
Permanent Gallery Location
Dutch Room
Bibliography
Alan Chong and Noriko Murai. Journeys East: Isabella Stewart Gardner and Asia. Exh. cat. (Boston: Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, 2009), p. 457, fig. 4.
Rights and reproductions
The use of images, text, and all other media found on this website is limited. Please review Rights and Reproductions for details.
Isabella Stewart Gardner kept meticulous records of many of her acquisitions. In keeping with this legacy, object information is continually being reviewed, updated, and enriched in order to give greater access to the collection.