Hyeondeungsa Temple Guardian Deities Painting

The Hyeondeungsa Temple Guardian Deities Painting is of a size typical for late-Joseon works of this kind, measuring 122 cm wide by 123 cm high. The picture surface is divided into two equal halves, and the sacred figures are painted at roughly the same size, so that the difference in rank among them is not reflected in the composition. On the right, Brahma (Beomcheon) and Indra (Jeseokcheon) are placed at the centre, flanked by the devas of the sun and moon and by child attendants holding a peach and a vase. In the upper left is Skanda (Witaecheon), shown wearing a helmet with upturned wing-shaped plumes; his face has clearly defined features, with the eyes and mouth notably small in proportion to the nose. A votive inscription (hwagi) on the painting identifies it as the work of the monk-painters Gwanheodang Seolhun and Yongbongdang Gyeongcheon, who are also known to have carved the Bronze Seated Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva of Hyeondeungsa Temple. Instances of the same monks producing both a Buddhist statue and a Buddhist painting are almost unknown, and this work is accordingly valued as important material for the study of Buddhist art of the late 18th century.

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Where it is

Region

Gapyeong, Gyeonggi

Designation

Provincial Tangible Heritage · 시도유형문화유산