By Ou Sokmean Cambodianess Monday October 27, 2025

Mebon Reclining Vishnu, National Museum of Cambodia, Phnom Penh, Cambodia © The Royal Government of Cambodia / photo by Thierry Ollivier for the Guimet Museum

PHNOM PENH — An exhibition entitled “Royal Bronzes: Cambodian Art of the Divine” opened in the United States on Oct. 25, showcasing the artistic and technical excellence of Khmer bronze casting from prehistoric times to the modern era.

Taking place in the city of Minneapolis, the temporary traveling exhibition is held through collaboration between the National Museum of Cambodia, the Guimet Museum of Asian Art in France, and the Minneapolis Institute of Art in United States, according to a post on the Ministry of Culture and Fine Arts’ Facebook page on Oct. 25.

The exhibition, whose aim is to highlight the brilliance of Khmer bronze craftsmanship, features 176 artifacts: 127 from the collection of the National Museum in Phnom Penh and 49 from the Guimet Museum in Paris, the ministry stated in the post. These objects travelled to the United States from France where they were part of an exhibition on Khmer bronze artworks at the Guimet Museum, which was held April 30 to July 8, 2025.

As Minister of Culture and Fine Arts Phoeurng Sackona had previously mentioned, these centuries-old works that featured in the exhibition entitled “Angkorian Bronzes: Art of the Divine,” in Paris represent the evolution of Khmer metallurgical craftsmanship from prehistoric to post-Angkorian periods. “Cambodia takes immense pride in the creations of our ancestors whose works, despite being thousands of years old, continue to serve as the nation’s greatest cultural ambassadors on the world stage,” she had said.

Sackona has described the Reclining Vishnu—the statue of the Hindu deity dating from the Angkor period and which was the centerpiece of the exhibition in Paris—as a symbolic ambassador of Khmer genius, bringing the extraordinary bronze-casting skills of ancient Cambodians to the international stage, and enabling global audiences to appreciate the grandeur and sophistication of the Khmer civilization. 

Prior to being exhibited in Paris, the statue had been sent to the Arc’Antique Laboratory, which is located in the city of Nantes in France, for a highly-specialized diagnostic and restoration work, and also to study Angkorian bronze-casting techniques. The results of the laboratory’s study are to be published.  

When the exhibition will conclude in Minnesota in mid-January 2026, the statue of Vishnu will be exhibited at the Smithsonian National Museum of Asian Art in Washington, D.C., and later on at the Asian Art Museum in San Francisco, California, where it will remain on display until early 2027.  

The Cambodian government continues to prioritize culture in diplomatic relations as a way to strengthen national identity, promote Cambodia’s tourism, and also to prepare for the Francophonie Summit, Sackona said. To be held in 2026, the summit will include participants of countries with a French heritage.

https://cambodianess.com/article/royal-bronzes-cambodian-art-of-the-divine-exhibition-travels-to-the-us?fbclid=IwY2xjawNsRbZleHRuA2FlbQIxMABicmlkETAyZHU4OXJnbFJCOWtGcDIyAR5iHvwFpIxWqsKkjptIpP1nGxy-mqA8Meax89CLAaRnNkWjrNgkmFF4WZ1lMA_aem_4cDLBCMNZyfTyxAmxJhnWA

SOURCE: Cambodianess, Cambodia,  Monday October 27, 2025

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