Stupa Group of Yeongwonsa Temple, Hamyang

The stupa group at Yeongwonsa Temple stands in a secluded wooded area about 1 km east of the temple, on the right side of the approach road, where five stupas — budo, stone monuments erected over the cremated remains of eminent monks — have been built. Apparently the temple's burial ground, the site occupies a gently sloping area of some 100 pyeong (roughly 330 m²), finished at the front with a stone retaining wall, with the five stupas set in the middle. The five stupas, believed to have been built for the most part in the late Joseon period, are in relatively good condition, and each bears its own memorial name (tapho). All five are thought to have been made of granite quarried locally, and they stand in a row at regular intervals from one another, each with its tapho carved on its body stone to identify the monk it commemorates. The first stupa from the left has the name Yeongamdang-tap incised in a shallow rectangular panel cut into the centre of its body stone. Made of two stone pieces forming the base and body, it shows a variant of the bell-shaped (seokjong) stupa type: the body gradually widens from bottom to top before turning sharply at the shoulder into a simplified finial, giving the whole the appearance of a large funerary urn (golho). The base forms two tiers resembling a circular seat, above which is a plinth supporting the body stone, and the finial, carved in one piece with the body stone, has a stylised jewel ornament that looks like the rim and lid of a jar. The second stupa from the left is made of three stone pieces forming the base, body stone and roof stone, and bears the name Seolpadang-tap on its body stone. It is the largest of the five and shows the finest stonework as well as a relatively well-composed design overall. Its style combines the octagonal and bell-shaped stupa types of the Joseon period into a stylised, sphere-shaped form. The base forms a single tier, square in plan but resembling a circular seat, above which is a plinth for the body; the body stone itself is a sphere slightly elongated from top to bottom. The roof stone is hexagonal, thick in profile, with a gently sloping drip surface and a supple eaves line; the hip and corner ridges are rendered in relief at its upper and lower edges, a single incised line runs around its underside, and a rounded jewel finial crowns the top. The third stupa from the left has the name Jungbongdang-tap incised on its body stone. It follows a stupa form common in the Joseon period, with an egg-shaped, bell-type body stone set on a plinth above a roughly worked circular base. Its finial, carved in one piece with the body stone, unusually bears a lotus crown that appears to rise from eight downturned lotus petals. The fourth stupa from the left follows the typical bell-shaped stupa style of the Joseon period and is the smallest of the five. Bearing the name Cheonggyedang-tap on its body stone, its base is octagonal, with sides and stonework of uneven quality, and above its egg-shaped body stone is a simply carved, hemispherical jewel finial. The fifth stupa from the left is a bell-shaped stupa with the name Byeokheodang-tap carved on its body. It closely resembles the third stupa from the left overall, but differs in detail, having a reasonably well-worked square base and a finial carved with a seven-petalled lotus crown. Although the five stupas stand in what is roughly a single row, drawing a straight line through them allows their relative order of construction to be compared. The stupa furthest back along this line is the second from the left, followed in order by the fourth, fifth, third and first from the left. This suggests that the Seolpadang-tap, standing slightly further back than the others, being the largest, and having comparatively fine stonework, is the earliest of the five to have been built. The monk commemorated by the Seolpadang-tap, the Great Master Seolpa Sangeon, was born in 1707 and died in 1791. He also founded Yeonggaksa Temple at Sangnam-ri, Seosang-myeon, Hamyang-gun, and carved the woodblocks for the Avatamsaka Sutra. The dates and activities of the monks commemorated by the other four stupas, however, are not known.

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Where it is

Region

Hamyang, Gyeongnam

Designation

Provincial Tangible Heritage · 시도유형문화유산