Wooden Amitabha Buddha Triad of Anguksa Temple

In Geungnakjeon Hall at Anguksa Temple, a seated Amitabha Buddha is flanked by the attendant bodhisattvas Avalokitesvara and Mahasthamaprapta. The seated Amitabha Buddha has a short neck and shoulders that appear drawn in, with the waist slightly stooped; the chin is short and angular, giving the face a somewhat stiff look, while the narrowed eyes and the corners of the mouth turned slightly upward suggest the trace of a faint smile. The nose is prominent and the three folds of the neck are clearly modelled; the robe covers both shoulders, and the sleeve flowing down from the left arm covers the toes at the thigh. The natural folds of the drapery and the realistically rendered hands give the whole figure a well-rounded, harmonious impression; it is about 67 cm tall, with a knee width of 43.5 cm and a shoulder width of around 30 cm. In the Avalokitesvara image on the left, the folds of the robe are treated as naturally as those of the main Buddha, and the hands are likewise notably realistic. The hair is gathered up so that a crown can be worn on it, resembling a short topknot, and hair is shown only below the crown, coiled once around the ear before flowing down over the shoulder. It is about 63 cm tall, with a knee width of 35.5 cm and a shoulder width of around 26 cm. In the Mahasthamaprapta image on the right, the hand gestures mirror those of the Avalokitesvara image, and the robe is of the Buddha-robe type; the chin is somewhat flatter and the waist a little more stooped, but otherwise the shape and expression of the face, the realistic hands and the natural drapery folds are almost identical in sculptural detail to those of the Avalokitesvara image. It is about 61 cm tall, with a knee width of 36.5 cm and a shoulder width of about 24 cm. No record of the statues' making has been found, so their exact date cannot be confirmed, but the slightly stooped posture, the thick, shortened neck, the flattened chin and angular face, the prominent nose, the solemn yet faintly smiling expression, the naturally treated drapery folds and the realistic hands all point to the sculptural style of the seventeenth century.

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Where it is

Region

Muju, Jeonbuk

Designation

Provincial Tangible Heritage · 시도유형문화유산