Hwasun Ssangbongsa Temple Daeungjeon Hall Wooden Buddha Triad

This wooden Buddha triad enshrined at Ssangbongsa Temple, Hwasun, is an unusual composition centred on a seated image of Sakyamuni Buddha, flanked by the standing figures of his disciples Kasyapa and Ananda. Ssangbongsa Temple was home to Korea's only surviving three-storey wooden pagoda-style hall, which had been designated a treasure and protected as such, but the hall burned down in 1984 and was subsequently rebuilt; fortunately, the wooden Buddha triad escaped damage in the fire. The central image of Sakyamuni is shown with the head tilted slightly forward; the face is nearly square, and the hair is rendered in tight snail-shell curls. The lips are touched with red and the figure smiles gently, with large, thick ears. The robe draped over both shoulders gives an impression of thickness. The right hand rests naturally, palm open, on the inside of the knee, while the left hand is placed on the sole of the right foot with the thumb and middle finger bent. Kasyapa and Ananda, standing on either side of Sakyamuni, hold their hands together in front of their chests in a gesture of prayer. The seated Sakyamuni, together with the figures of Kasyapa and Ananda, was made in 1694, the twentieth year of King Sukjong of Joseon. Its manner and style of production display well the characteristics of late Joseon Buddhist statues, and because its date of production is known with certainty, it is of very great value as a benchmark for dating other undated sculptures.

AI Translation

Where it is

Region

Hwasun, Jeonnam & Gwangju

Designation

Provincial Tangible Heritage · 시도유형문화유산