Seonwonsa Temple Site, Ganghwa

The Seonwonsa Temple Site, Ganghwa was first discovered in 1976 by a Dongguk University academic survey team conducting a surface survey of Ganghwado Island. At the time of discovery, several plinth stones were found there, along with bricks bearing a treasure-flower (bosanghwa) pattern, roof tiles inscribed with Sanskrit (beomja) characters, and figurines (japsang) that had once stood along the roof ridge. As the site, located in Dogam Village and on Dogamsan Mountain in Seonwon-myeon, was judged to hold academic and historical value on the basis of the area's origins, it was designated a historic site in 1977 as the Seonwonsa Temple Site, Ganghwa. Four rounds of excavation carried out at the site since 1996 by the Dongguk University Museum have uncovered building sites, retaining walls and drainage features, together with lotus-patterned roof tiles, a gilt-bronze image of the birth of the Buddha, a bronze arhat (nahan) statue, and carbonised sutras written in gold and in ink. These finds confirm that the remains are associated with a temple site, but no archaeological evidence has yet been found to confirm that this is in fact the site of Seonwonsa Temple where the Tripitaka Koreana of Goryeo was carved, as recorded in the Annals of the Joseon Dynasty; long-term investigation will be needed to settle this question. For reference, the four rounds of excavation (1996–2001) identified 21 separate building sites and seven attached corridor (haengnang) sites, densely arranged across four terraces running east–west on ground that is higher in the north and lower in the south. In the large central building site, whose platform (gidan) measures 38 m in length, the remains of an altar thought to have supported a triad of Buddha images were identified; ondol underfloor-heating features were found in five building sites, along with drainage facilities, but no pagoda site was confirmed. The excavated area, the central zone where the building sites are concentrated, measures roughly 180 m from north to south and 180 m from east to west. The excavated artefacts consist mainly of ceramics, roof tiles, a small bronze image of the birth of the Buddha, a gilt-bronze arhat statue, and carbonised fragments of sutras. Of the roughly 2,300 ceramic pieces, the great majority (94%) are celadon fragments believed to date from the late twelfth to the fourteenth century. Among the roof tiles, plain tiles are the most numerous, alongside eave-end tiles (maksae), ridge-end finials (chwidu), and roof figurines; most of the eave-end tiles bear lotus, Sanskrit-character, or 'ghost-eye' (gwimok) patterns, and some are inscribed with the names 'Bak' and 'Yu'. A total of 21 ridge-end finial fragments were examined.

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Where it is

Region

Ganghwa, Incheon

Designation

Historic Site · 사적