Geungnakjeon Hall of Hwaamsa Temple, Wanju

Hwaamsa is a temple south of Sirubong on Bulmyeongsan, a branch of Geumsansa. There is no detailed record of its founding, but records that Wonhyo and Uisang practised here after returning from study suggest it was founded before King Munmu of Silla. Geungnakjeon, symbolising the Pure Land, was built in 1605, the thirty-eighth year of King Seonjo, according to records found when it was dismantled and repaired in 1981. It is three bays wide and three deep, with a gabled roof shaped like the character 人, simple and small in scale. It is of the multi-bracket type, with bracket sets on and between the columns. Inside, a statue of Avalokitesvara is enshrined at the back of the central bay, beneath a canopy shaped like a roof carved with dragons. Geungnakjeon of Hwaamsa has the only hainang structure in Korea. In this structure an additional member bears the weight of the eaves from outside, so that on the principle of the lever the eaves can project much further than in the usual structure. It was common in China and Japan until recent centuries, but it is unique in Korea and a precious source for the study of timber architecture.

AI Translation

Where it is

Region

Wanju, Jeonbuk

Designation

National Treasure · 국보