The Śaiva Deities of the Directions in the Light of Two Recently Discovered Consecration Deposits (Peripih) from Central Java

This article returns to the question of the Śaiva deities of the points of the compass in premodern Central Java in the light of archaeological and epigraphical evidence, namely the recently excavated, ca. 9th-10th century ritual deposits of Candi Kimpulan and Ringinlarik, which include most notably a golden lotus and inscribed gold foils laid within stone caskets. By comparing these new findings with relevant Old Javanese inscriptions and transmitted literature, as well as similar material and textual evidence from the wider Indic world (i.e., South and Southeast Asia), the authors will describe the system of twenty-four plus two protective deities surrounding the central deity (Śiva) that appears to have been prevalent in Central Java, and which largely agrees with the one hypothesized by Acri and Jordaan (2012) on the basis of the analysis of the reliefs of Candi Śiva in Loro Jonggrang, Prambanan. Further, the results of an analysis of the material component of the gold foils are discussed.