Seated Rock-carved Avalokitesvara of Hakdoam Hermitage

This rock-carved Buddha is enshrined at Hakdoam, a modest hermitage located halfway up Cheonbosan Mountain in Junggye-dong, Nowon-gu, Seoul; it is a 13.4-metre-high figure of Avalokitesvara carved in relief on the face of a huge rock. An inscription on the side of the rock records that it was made in 1870, the seventh year of Emperor Gojong, at the devout wish of Empress Myeongseong, and that in 1878, the fifteenth year of Emperor Gojong, the rock-carved Buddha was reinforced when Hakdoam Hermitage was repaired. The figure has an imposing build and a full, gentle face, and wears an elaborate crown. A small Buddha is carved on the front of the crown, identifying the figure as Avalokitesvara. The thin robe draping over both shoulders falls softly over the ornate lotus-patterned pedestal on which the bodhisattva sits, and a thick bracelet on the left wrist adds to the figure's beauty. Together with the surviving inscription, it is considered an outstanding work displaying the finest skill in nineteenth-century carving technique.

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Where it is

Region

Nowon-gu, Seoul

Designation

Provincial Tangible Heritage · 시도유형문화유산