Standing Maesan-ri Stone Buddha

This 3.9-metre-tall bodhisattva statue stands near Bongeopsa Temple Site in Anseong. Its body is like a flat stone pillar with no sense of volume, and the details are not finely carved overall; the high cylindrical crown topped with a square bogae (a canopy, originally a parasol used by Indian nobles when travelling outdoors, here placed above the head like a hat) is a stylistic feature of early Goryeo Buddhist images. The bogae, which later underwent various transformations, is characteristic of early Goryeo statues found mainly in Chungcheong Province and the southern part of Gyeonggi Province. The broad, square face has narrow, horizontally rendered eyes, a short nose and a small mouth. The detailed treatment of the face, together with the tall crown, clearly shows the period features of this work. Over the rounded shoulders, a somewhat thick monastic robe is draped only over the left shoulder; falling from the left shoulder to cover the front of the body, the robe forms stepped "U"-shaped folds from the chest downward, which continue as further "U"-shaped folds on each leg down to the feet. As befits a bodhisattva, both wrists wear bracelets; the right hand is held at the chest with the palm turned outward and the fingers slightly bent, while the left hand, with the back of the hand facing outward, rests on the abdomen. With its head ornament of a round crown and canopy and its stone-pillar-like body, this is a representative work belonging to the group of large stone Buddhist images that flourished in the early Goryeo period, centred on Chungcheong Province and the southern part of Gyeonggi Province.

AI Translation

Where it is

Region

Anseong, Gyeonggi

Designation

Provincial Tangible Heritage · 시도유형문화유산