Seated Irwon-dong Bulguksa Temple Stone Buddha

This Buddha statue is a seated stone Buddha enshrined in the Yaksabojeon Hall of Bulguksa Temple in Irwon-dong, Seoul, a temple known as an old temple (gochal) dating from the end of the Goryeo dynasty; it stands 79.5 cm in total height. The face is large in proportion to the body, the head is carved with tight spiral curls (nabal), and a cintamani-shaped topknot ornament (gyeju) is rendered at the crown. There are cracks at the base of the statue, and because the surface has been coated with many layers of white pigment (hobun), the statue's original features are difficult to make out, though it is presumed to have had a full, round face with delicate features. The Buddha's body as a whole appears shrunken, and the shoulders are narrow in proportion to the size of the head. It wears a thick outer robe (daeui) in the style that bares the right shoulder, the robe's folds carved at regular intervals and somewhat roughly. The two hands are placed one on top of the other on the legs, which are folded in the full lotus position, forming the meditation mudra (seonjeong-in). This stone Buddha basically continues the statue types that were popular at the transition from late Silla to early Goryeo, but the awkward proportion between the head and the body and the unnatural carving of the robe's folds suggest that it is a work from the end of the Goryeo dynasty. It is currently worshipped at the temple as a Medicine Buddha, but it differs from the iconography of Medicine Buddhas of the Goryeo period, and it is thought to have originally been made as an Amitabha Buddha. Although it has been repainted and repaired on several occasions and so does not retain its original appearance, it is a statue that well illustrates the regional style of stone Buddha sculpture of the late Goryeo period, and has accordingly been designated a Seoul cultural heritage material.

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Where it is

Region

Gangnam-gu, Seoul

Designation

Cultural Heritage Material · 문화유산자료