Inscribed "Gwangseo19nyeon" Guardian Deities Painting of Tongdosa Temple, Yangsan

A Guardian Deities Painting (sinjungdo) is a devotional Buddhist painting that depicts, in an accessible pictorial form, the guardian deities venerated in Mahayana Buddhism as protectors of the Buddhist teachings. This painting is a hanging scroll held in the Tongdosa Temple Seongbo Museum, painted in colour on silk and measuring 168.2 cm by 153.0 cm. Its composition differs from that of other guardian-deity paintings: in the upper register, Indra is placed off-centre to the left, as if the left edge of the scene had been cut away, with celestial beings arranged on either side of him and the bodhisattva Dongjin placed to the right, while the guardian figures occupy the lower register, so that the whole painting is focused on Indra at the left. Elaborate flower, cloud and tiger-skin patterns, together with vivid colouring, give it a splendid appearance. An inscription on the painting records that it was produced in 1893, the thirtieth year of King Gojong of Joseon, by the monk-painters Haegyu, Deongnim, Duhaeng and others. The inscription also shows that the painting was originally enshrined in Geungnakbojeon Hall, in front of the Geumgang Gyedan Ordination Platform at Tongdosa Temple. Although not well preserved, its unusual composition gives it important value for the study of Buddhist painting in the late Joseon period.

AI Translation

Where it is

Region

Yangsan, Gyeongnam

Designation

Cultural Heritage Material · 문화유산자료