Dating: 12th century CE

Provenance: Binh Dinh Province

Inventory No.: BTC 198

Material: Sandstone

This artifact likely served as the base of an altar or pedestal. The central register features 23 sculpted breasts rendered with exquisite symmetry and precision, each measuring 11 cm in diameter. The upper and lower molding borders are framed with twisted scroll motifs and hatched linear patterns typical of sculptures discovered in the Thap Mam style of Binh Dinh. A circular depression on the top surface suggests the socket where a now-broken Linga was once anchored. The decorative motif of female breasts reflects the indigenous veneration of the Mother Goddess of the Realm and the matriarchal structure of traditional Cham society.

According to Cham mythology, the Mother Goddess of the Realm is Uroja (the Breast Mother), credited with founding the Kingdom of Champa, bearing the first Cham people, and teaching them the arts of agriculture, animal husbandry, and textile weaving.