Architectural element with monster face and female deity

A female deity sits atop a ferocious face. It is possible she is the Hindu goddess Lakshmi, who is depicted in the image below. The implements in the figure’s hands that might give us clues to her identity are either missing or worn away. The shape of the sculpture suggests it might have been the pediment of a Cham temple in Central Vietnam. Large carved images of demon faces were used in both Hindu and Buddhist temple architecture in South Asia and Southeast Asia. Often placed above the entrances to temples, they warded off evil and protected those who passed underneath them.