Seated Sangwonsa Temple Wooden Buddhas of the Three Ages

This is a Buddha triad of the Three Ages, comprising Sakyamuni Buddha, Amitabha Buddha, and the Medicine Buddha, currently enshrined as the main image in the Daeungjeon Hall of Sangwonsa Temple, Gochang. All three, standing 140-150 cm in height, are large images that appear somewhat oversized for the scale of the present Daeungjeon Hall, suggesting that they were not originally enshrined here. According to tradition, this Buddha triad was stolen and recovered three times; when the monk Man-am of Baegyangsa Temple built a Daeungjeon Hall and tried to move the images there, they would not budge, so they were left as they were. Having suffered much damage over the years, the Sakyamuni and Amitabha images in particular were in poor condition, but four years ago they were newly regilded, so their state of preservation is now good. These Buddha images differ from one another only in their hand gestures; their carving technique, size, and facial features are otherwise similar. Sakyamuni Buddha is enshrined in the centre, with the Medicine Buddha to the left and the seated Amitabha Buddha to the right. The central Sakyamuni image, at 152 cm, is about 10 cm taller than the two flanking images but otherwise of similar scale. The Buddha images of Sangwonsa Temple are among the wooden Buddha images that were popular during the reigns of King Injo and King Sukjong (1623-1725), and they display an overall well-balanced bodily proportion, a serene facial expression, a prominent nose, a full face, and naturally rendered drapery, all stylistic features characteristic of late-Joseon Buddhist sculpture. In particular, they show a style similar to Buddhist images produced in the mid-17th century by sculptor-monks of the Muyeom school, such as the Wooden Seated Buddha Triad of the Three Ages in the Daeungjeon Hall of Bulgapsa Temple (1635), the Wooden Seated Sakyamuni Triad in the Nahanjeon Hall of Songgwangsa Temple, Jeonju (1651), and the Buddha Triad of the Three Ages at Munsusa Temple, Gochang, faithfully reflecting the style of Buddhist sculpture in the Honam region during the 17th century.

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Where it is

Region

Gochang, Jeonbuk

Designation

Provincial Tangible Heritage · 시도유형문화유산