Seated Daewonsa Temple Wooden Buddhas of the Three Ages

This is a set of Buddhas of the Three Ages comprising Shakyamuni, Amitabha and Bhaisajyaguru, the Medicine Buddha, currently enshrined as the principal images in the Daeungjeon Hall of Daewonsa Temple on Moaksan Mountain. Shakyamuni is enshrined at the centre, with Bhaisajyaguru to the viewer's right and Amitabha to the viewer's left; their seated heights range from 116 to 130 cm, and all three images are in relatively good condition. The concept of the 'Buddhas of the Three Ages' originally denoted a set of three images symbolising the past, present and future. It is almost unknown in India but became popular in China from the earliest introduction of Buddhist imagery, appearing already at sites such as the Yungang Grottoes of the Northern Wei period, although in these early instances no fixed identities were given to the three Buddhas. By the 6th century, however, a grouping of Rocana, Maitreya and Amitabha had emerged, and this tradition continued into the 9th century; in the Liao and Jin periods a grouping of Dipankara, Shakyamuni and Maitreya became popular, in the Southern Song a grouping of Vairocana, Amitabha and Bhaisajyaguru, and in the Yuan a grouping of Shakyamuni, Bhaisajyaguru and Amitabha. This tradition was also transmitted to Korea. In the late Goryeo period, groupings of Shakyamuni, Maitreya and Amitabha were made, as in the rock-carved standing Buddhas of the Three Ages at Sambulam Rock on Geumgangsan Mountain, and by the Joseon period a grouping of Shakyamuni, Bhaisajyaguru and Amitabha became widely popular. The Daewonsa Temple images follow this latter format, which was highly favoured in the late Joseon period. Apart from differences in hand gesture, the three images are alike in carving technique, size and facial type. The central Shakyamuni, at 130 cm, is about 10 cm taller than the two flanking images, though all three are of broadly similar scale. The posture shows only a slight forward tilt of the head, the back held straight, and the body seated in the full lotus position, facing forward with a dignified bearing. The face has an angular forehead giving an impression of firmness, while the full, rounded chin lends a softer feel; the high yet full nose, the smiling lips and the round, fleshy chin all show a rich sense of volume that gives an overall soft impression. The head is covered in snail-shell curls, with a semicircular mid-knot jewel and a cylindrical top-knot jewel, and the neck clearly shows the three folds. These features resemble those of mid-17th-century images such as the Wooden Seated Buddhas of the Three Ages in the Daeungjeon Hall of Bulgapsa Temple (1635), the Amitabha Buddha in the Geungnakbojeon Hall of Sinheungsa Temple (1651), the Seated Shakyamuni Buddha of Songgwangsa Temple (1656), and the Buddhas of the Three Ages of Munsusa Temple in Gochang, and can be regarded as typical of the work of sculptor-monks active mainly in the Honam region in the early to mid-17th century. The upper body has rounded, somewhat full shoulders, and the lower body, with its wide knee span, gives a stable seated posture. The robe is worn in the right-shoulder-bared style, with the edge of the outer robe draped lightly over the right shoulder, its hem passing beneath in a broad U shape and tucked into the inner garment on the left. Across the chest, the inner skirt and its binding sash are broadly rendered, the skirt's upper edge forming a horizontal zigzag. The right hand rests on the knee in the earth-touching gesture, while the left hand rests on the left knee with thumb and middle finger joined; the hem of the outer robe flows down at length over the stably crossed legs, forming horizontal folds across both knees and spreading out at the centre like a broad leaf. The flanking Amitabha and Bhaisajyaguru images are almost identical in style to the Shakyamuni image, differing only slightly in robe style and hand gesture: whereas Shakyamuni bares the right shoulder, Bhaisajyaguru and Amitabha wear the robe covering both shoulders, its edge passing around the right arm and tucked in beneath the left side at the middle of the abdomen — a style commonly seen in 17th-century Buddhist images. The hand gestures of the two flanking images are also mirror images of one another: Amitabha raises the right hand to shoulder height with thumb and middle finger touching and rests the left hand on the knee likewise, while Bhaisajyaguru shows the reverse arrangement. The three images faithfully reflect the characteristics of 17th-century Buddhist sculpture. In particular, the way the robe draped over Shakyamuni's right shoulder curves down before rising again to pass behind the right elbow shows an affinity with the Wooden Seated Buddhas of the Three Ages in the Daeungjeon Hall of Gaeamsa Temple in Buan, made in the 1640s by the sculptor-monk Yeongcheol and others. The clear line running from both eyebrows to the nose and the high nose recall the Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva made by Yeongcheol and others at Hwagyesa Temple in 1649, and the Amitabha image within the Wooden Amitabha Triad of Jeongsusa Temple in Wanju, made by Muyeom and others in 1652. The horizontal folds across both knees and the technique of spreading the robe's hem broadly like flower petals at the centre closely resemble the Wooden Seated Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva of Bulgapsa Temple in Yeonggwang, made in 1654, also by Muyeom and others.

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Where it is

Region

Wanju, Jeonbuk

Designation

Provincial Tangible Heritage · 시도유형문화유산