Seated Stone Buddha at Songnimsa Temple Site, Geochang

The stone Buddha displayed in the museum's outdoor exhibition area was excavated from the site of a temple at Songnim village, Malheul-ri, Mari-myeon, and had been kept at Mari Middle School before being moved here when the museum opened. The statue as a whole has lost its lower body, which has broken away, and is badly worn. Where the head survives it has a smooth, uncurled crown of hair with a low usnisha, and the face shows a hint of a compassionate smile. The outer robe covers both shoulders, and closely spaced parallel folds are clearly visible on both shoulders and at the cuffs. Both hands are too worn to make out clearly, but their position suggests they probably formed the jigwonin, a mudra in which one hand grasps a finger of the other. The pedestal was assembled here using stonework that had stood at Songnim village, and its lowest tier is badly damaged. Notably, an arhat figure is carved in relief on the middle tier of the pedestal, which is unusual. Despite some wear and damage, this is a fine stone Buddha of the Unified Silla period, complete with its pedestal.

AI Translation

Where it is

Region

Geochang, Gyeongnam

Designation

Provincial Tangible Heritage · 시도유형문화유산