Reliquaries from the West Five-story Stone Pagoda of

This is a group of Unified Silla-period artefacts discovered inside the West Five-story Stone Pagoda (a treasure) on the grounds of Hwaeomsa Temple, located in Hwangjeon-ri, Masan-myeon, Gurye-gun, South Jeolla Province, during dismantling and repair work in 1995. A dharani sutra handwritten in ink on white paper and a bronze Buddha-image mould were found, along with a variety of other objects including a bronze bell and ornaments, an iron knife, metal fragments, and crystal pieces. Among these, the dharani sutra handwritten in ink on white paper is a transcription of the text of the sutra; since almost no books or records survive from before the Goryeo period, it is a precious source providing important bibliographical and Buddhist information on the paper, script, and characters of the Unified Silla period. The pagoda print (tab-in) is the only surviving physical material in Korea revealing the early stage of the history of printing in ancient Korea. The bronze Buddha-image mould is an almost unique example in Korea of a mould used for casting Buddha images, and is an important artefact indicating the mass production of Buddha images. The artefacts found in the West Five-story Stone Pagoda of Hwaeomsa Temple allow a comprehensive re-examination of Unified Silla Buddhist thought, doctrine, and social background, and are regarded as precious material for academic research in fields such as bibliography and art history.

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Where it is

Region

Gurye, Jeonnam & Gwangju

Designation

Treasure · 보물