Seated Stone Buddha and Votive Objects (set) held at Jeongbangsa Temple

Jeongbangsa Temple was founded when Ssanggyeam Hermitage, formerly located at San 85-1, Sanghyo-dong, was relocated to Seohong-dong in the 1930s and later moved again to its present site. The seated stone Buddha held at Jeongbangsa was originally made and enshrined in 1702 at Daeheungsa Temple on Dongnisan Mountain, Bungnyeong, Suncheon, in South Jeolla Province; it was later enshrined at Ssanggyeam Hermitage before being moved to its present location. The statue represents Visvabhu Buddha, the third of the Seven Buddhas of the Past, and is the first example of this figure ever discovered in Korea. It is made of Gyeongju Buddha stone, a soft stone quarried near Gyeongju and favoured for Buddhist images, and measures 61.5 cm in overall height, 44.5 cm in overall width, 28.0 cm across the shoulders, and 42.0 cm across the knees. Inside the statue's cavity (bokjang) were found a votive prayer text written at the time of the statue's creation, together with dharani (Buddhist incantation texts) and a huryeongtong, a small ritual container placed inside Buddha images. Made in the early 18th century in a style inherited from 17th-century Buddhist sculpture, the statue is an outstanding work combining restraint with refinement and fluidity. Because the votive objects have survived, the date of its creation can be fixed with precision, giving it high scholarly value; moreover, it confirms that the Seven Buddhas of the Past, otherwise apparently depicted only in Buddhist paintings, were also made and worshipped in sculptural form, giving the piece considerable value as a historical source.

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Where it is

Region

Seogwipo, Jeju

Designation

Provincial Tangible Heritage · 시도유형문화유산