Seated Rock-carved Maitreya Buddha in Bongcheon-dong

This Buddha statue is carved in relief on a huge cliff face partway up the northern slope of Gwanaksan Mountain in Seoul, depicting the Maitreya Buddha who is said to appear in the future world to save all living beings. The head is bare, with a low, round topknot-shaped hair bun, and the face is slender and oval. The slender body and rounded shoulders suggest the work of a highly skilled sculptor. The statue bears the absolute date of 1630, making it a valuable resource for research into the chronology of Joseon-dynasty sculpture, and the inscription "Mireukjonbul" (彌勒尊佛, Venerable Buddha Maitreya) shows that belief in Maitreya was still popular in Joseon society in the seventeenth century. It is accordingly regarded as a work that can serve as a standard representative of seventeenth-century Joseon Buddhist statues.

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Where it is

Region

Gwanak-gu, Seoul

Designation

Provincial Tangible Heritage · 시도유형문화유산