Central Three-story Stone Pagoda at Seongjusa Temple Site, Boryeong

Seongjusa Temple is said to be the same temple as Ohapsa Temple, mentioned in the Samguk sagi as having been founded during the reign of King Beop of Baekje. During the reign of King Munseong of Unified Silla, the monk Nanghye, who had returned from Tang China, became abbot of the temple and brought it to prosperity, whereupon the king bestowed on it the name Seongjusa. The temple burned down during the Japanese invasions of 1592–98, and today only its site remains. This pagoda stands at the centre of three stone pagodas that line up side by side behind the site of a building presumed to have been the main hall, within the old temple grounds. Like the pagodas standing beside it, it consists of a three-story pagoda body set on a two-tiered base. On each side of each tier of the base, pillar-shaped carvings are cut at the corners and centre. Above the base, a separate stone was inserted to support the first-story body stone. The first-story body stone of the pagoda appears much larger than those of the second and third stories, and a large piece has broken off one corner. On the southern face, a door shape is carved, with a lock shape at its centre and, below the lock, a pair of door rings shaped like animal faces; the remaining space is filled with round, nail-head-shaped carvings. The roof stones appear wide in relation to the body stones, each with four tiers of eaves-supports on the underside, and the four corners turn up slightly at the tips, giving a light, buoyant appearance. The form of the stone supporting the first-story body and the four tiers of eaves-supports on the roof stones both reflect the style of the late Unified Silla period, suggesting the pagoda was made at that time. Compared with the other pagodas on the temple site, it has a more ornate and graceful appearance, but it has also suffered the greatest damage, which is a cause for regret to those who see it.

AI Translation

Where it is

Region

Boryeong, Chungnam

Designation

Treasure · 보물