Seonunsa Temple Seok Clan Won

Seok Clan Won (釋氏源流) refers to a set of woodblocks recording the life story of Sakyamuni Buddha. The Seonunsa Temple Seok Clan Won woodblocks were kept in Yeongsanjeon Hall at Seonunsa Temple, moved to the temple's Gwaneumjeon Hall on 3 January 1994, and are now kept and managed in the storage of the Seonunsa Temple Museum of Buddhist Art. The Seok Clan Won woodblocks were carved by royal command in 1486, the seventeenth year of King Seongjong, but were destroyed by fire during the Japanese invasions. Master Samyeong later obtained a copy of the text while in Japan, and in 1648, the twenty-sixth year of King Injo, Choe Seo-dong and the monk Haeun used it as the base text to re-carve the blocks. The blocks carved at that time are the very ones preserved at Seonunsa Temple to this day. These woodblocks originally numbered 103 sheets and 409 blocks, but most have since been lost, and only 62 sheets and 124 blocks are now designated and preserved as cultural heritage. Both sides of each block are carved: the lower part bears the text of the Seok Clan Won, while the upper part bears an illustration of that content. Each block measures 39 cm wide and 29.5 cm long. The Seonunsa Temple Seok Clan Won woodblocks are a masterpiece among masterpieces of Joseon-period illustration, and constitute important research material for the history of Korean art, particularly the history of woodblock printmaking.

AI Translation

Where it is

Region

Gochang, Jeonbuk

Designation

Provincial Tangible Heritage · 시도유형문화유산