PHNOM PENH – More than 200 bronze objects from the mid-11th century, including the magnificent reclining statue of Lord Vishnu, will tell stories of the Khmer empire at an exhibition at the Guimet Museum in Paris. 

The “Angkor Royal Bronzes: Art of the Divine” exhibition will run from April 30 to September 8. 

It is co-organized by the museum, French School Ecole Francaise d'Extreme-Orient (EFEO), the Center and Search Restoration Musees de France and the National Museum of Cambodia.

On April 28, Phoeurng Sackona, Minister of Culture and Fine Arts, along with a Cambodian delegation, had the honor of representing Khmer history in a foreign land by presiding over the launch. 

Also present was Thani Mohamed Soilihi, French Minister of State for Francophonie and International Partnerships. 

In a post on April 29, the French Embassy to Cambodia said, “The exhibition is another evidence of the trustworthy relationship between both countries in the field of heritage conservation.” 

The bronze objects and the Vishnu statue, from the National Museum of Cambodia, aim to show Cambodians’ heartfelt connection to their ancestors and answer foreigners’ curiosity about the Khmer Empire history. 

The exhibition will serve its purpose again when it moves to the Minneapolis Institute of Art in the US at the end of this year and until early 2026. 

Later, the statue will move to the Smithsonian National Museum of Asian Art in Washington DC and at the Asian Art Museum in San Francisco. 

The statue of Lord Vishnu was first discovered in 1936 in the West Mebon temple where the lord once reclined. It is in fragments laid out five meters in length. The statue had been moved from Siem Reap province to Phnom Penh, where it stayed for years for preservation at the National Museum. 
 

“Cambodia is highly proud of our ancestors’ masterpieces which are thousand years old and remain the best-known ambassadors of the country on the international stage,” the Culture and Fine Arts Ministry said. 

Culture is a priority in the field of diplomacy, and strengthens the national identity, serving as the driving force for tourism and for the 20th Francophonie Summit hosting next year, the ministry said.