Stone Seated Bodhisattva from Hansongsa Temple Site, Gangneung

A bodhisattva that stood at the Hansongsa Temple Site in Gangneung, Gangwon. It was taken to Japan in 1912 and returned under the Korea–Japan treaty signed in 1965. Apart from the marks left when its severed head was rejoined and the damage where the jewel between its brows fell away, it is almost complete. It wears a very tall cylindrical crown, with a topknot rising high above it. The square face with its plump cheeks has narrow carved eyes and a faint smile at the mouth. Three thick lines are drawn on the neck, and a triple necklace falls to the chest. The robe over both shoulders is carved with soft, natural folds. The right hand, index finger extended, holds a lotus branch raised to the chest; the left, also with index finger extended, rests on the knee. The right leg is tucked inside and the left outside, the reverse of the stone seated bodhisattva from the Hansongsa Temple Site, Gangneung (a treasure), found at the same place. Where Korean stone Buddhas are almost all granite, this one is unusual in being white marble. The carving and the texture of the stone together give it a more elegant and gentle dignity. The face and body, turned slightly to the right, are full, and the carving mature and precise. The cylindrical crown, full face and smile are shared with the stone seated bodhisattva from the Sinboksa Temple Site, Gangneung (a treasure) and the stone seated bodhisattva of Woljeongsa Temple, Pyeongchang (a national treasure), but this shows a still more refined hand. It is thought to date from the tenth century, early Goryeo.

AI Translation

Where it is

Region

Chuncheon, Gangwon

Designation

National Treasure · 국보