Cambodia · Wood Carving / Sculpture
Chher Chhka Chher; Roub Chher
The carving of wood into architectural ornament, devotional statuary, and household ritual objects — one of the Khmer 'principal crafts' alongside weaving, silver- and goldsmithing, and stone sculpture, according to standard art-historical surveys of Cambodia, yet entirely undocumented in the archive prior to this retroactive check despite the existing Khmer stone-carving records (CRAFT-0509, CRAFT-0526). Where Khmer stone carving is now largely a revival and replica trade (the surrounding literature notes original stone sculpture became rare after the 1970s–80s, with cement molds replacing hand carving in modern temple construction), wood carving has remained continuously practiced, producing house pillars carved with moon, star, flower, and plant motifs, carved roof beams, wooden Buddha images, carved offering and betel boxes, and — distinctively — a wooden guardian statue known as the 'God of the house,' kept and venerated within traditional Khmer homes. A significant contemporary strand of the craft works in reclaimed old-growth hardwood recovered from demolished houses, beds, and pagoda structures, since the dense, slow-growing timber species traditionally favored are now illegal to newly harvest in Cambodia.
Risk level: Vulnerable · Not Listed
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