Burmese Naga Makara head

• Burmese xylophone ornament in lacquered and gilded wood, decorated with glass inlay motifs, early 20th century.
• Very good condition.
• Provenance: Claude de Marteau Collection
• Sold with certificate of origin.
• Dimensions (excluding base): H 43 cm x D 39 cm x W 18 cm

A mythological motif at the heart of Burmese ornamentation

This Burmese Naga or Makara head is part of a decorative vocabulary derived from the mythological bestiary of ancient India, disseminated throughout Southeast Asia with the expansion of Hindu and Buddhist cultures. The Makara, a composite aquatic creature, traditionally combines a trunk reminiscent of an elephant, crocodile teeth, and a fish tail, forming a hybrid being linked to the primordial forces of water.

Example of a Makara motif in Burmese art.

In Burma, this motif is frequently used in religious architecture and decorative arts, particularly at the ends of lintels, pediments, or ritual furniture elements. Over time, its representation has progressively stylized, abandoning certain naturalistic features in favor of more ornamental forms, often characterized by volutes and fluid lines.

The association of the Naga and the Makara reinforces the symbolic dimension of the ensemble. It evokes protection, fertility, and abundance, while conveying a cyclical conception of the world where water, the source of life, plays a central role. This carved head thus testifies to an iconographic language where mythological power transforms into a structuring decorative element.