• Journal of the Geological Society of Korea
• /
• v.54 no.5
• /
• pp.567-578
• /
• 2018

A nondestructive petrological investigation was carried out to identify the original location and form of the Gyeongju Seated Stone Buddha with Square Pedestals in the Blue House (so-called Stone Buddha in the Blue House). The Statue is a representative stone Buddha statue of Silla (9th century) but its original location is controversial and some parts were missing. Based on the petrological observation, magnetic susceptibility and gamma spectrometry, its stone material was identified as medium-grained alkali feldspar granite. This kind of granites are widely found in the Namsan, Gyeongju. It is very likely that the Namsan granites are the source of rock of the Stone Buddha. The Yudeoksa (Igeosaji temple site) and Namsan are possible to be the original home of the Buddha Statue since there are petrologically identical alkali feldspar granite outcrop distributed in Namsan and stone heritage made of the same stone type in both places. An investigation on the square middle stone base in the Chuncheon National Museum reveals that it is less likely to be the missing part of the Buddha statue as the stone base is fine- to medium-grained pink feldspar granite and has different magnetic susceptibility from the Buddha statue. This study confirmed the contribution and significance of petrological investigation to identification of stone heritage in Korea.

• Conservation Science in Museum
• /
• v.12
• /
• pp.1-7
• /
• 2011

The seated stone Buddha(Bon5190) of National Museum of Korea initially consisted of some 90 fragments, making it difficult to guess its overall appearance. Under a restoration work which lasted four months, the fragments were joined together, giving shape to a seated Stone Buddha in Bhumisparsa(earth touching) mudra and an associated figure of Bodhisattva missing the face. The statue was made from a single stone block by digging out the center. Traces of lacquer coating and a gilded layer above the lacquer coat were found in various parts. Polarizing microscopy and XRD analysis revealed that the stone was zeolite, a mineral formed through diagenesis of volcanic glassy ashes from trachytic tuff (Nuldaeri) and dacitic tuff (Guryongpo). In Korea, zeolite deposit found mostly in Gyeongsangbuk-do, in places like Yeonil, Guryongpo, Gampo and Ulsan. The restored statue of seated Buddha proved very similar in appearance to the seated stone Buddha of Deoksa Temple in Cheongdo-gun, Gyeongsangbuk-do (housed in Yeongsanjeon Hall). The scroll inside the statue, containing information about the background and circumstances of creation of this Buddhist sculpture, indicates that the monk Seung-ho took part in it as the head sculptor-monk.

• Conservation Science in Museum
• /
• v.30
• /
• pp.47-70
• /
• 2023

In 2019, the first excavation survey was conducted at the Temple Site No. 4 of Yaksugok Vally in Namsan Mountain, Gyeongju to determine the original location of the headless stone Buddha statue and the structure of the temple site. The survey excavated a stone Buddha head that was confirmed in a comparative analysis to be petrologically and mineralogically identical to a headless stone seated Buddha statue found derelict nearby. Traces of gold leaf and black adhesive were found on a portion of the right side of the face of the Buddha head buried in the ground. Since it is exceedingly rare for lacquer and gilding techniques to have been applied to a large stone Buddha statue without a base layer, this study examines the gilding techniques of the time by analyzing the characteristics of the materials used. In this process, the structure of the gold foil was observed through analytical microscopy and scanning electron microscopy with energy dispersive X-ray spectrometry, and the gold (Au) component was identified. As a result of analyzing the black adhesive using pyrolysis-gas chromatograph/mass spectrometry (pyrolysis-GC/MS), pyrolysis compounds such as hydrocarbons, fatty acids, catechol, and catechol oxidation products were detected. This was identical to the characteristics identified upon analyzing lacquer collected from species of lacquer tree whose main component is urushiol. Therefore, it was confirmed that the stone Buddha head excavated from the Temple Site No. 4 of Yaksugok Valley was separated from a nearby stone seated Buddha statue, and that the gold foil was attached using lacquer sap collected from lacquer trees, which grow in Korea, China, and Japan.

• Conservation Science in Museum
• /
• v.8
• /
• pp.3-11
• /
• 2007

There is a Seated Stone Bhaishajyaguru-Vaidurya Buddha (Medicine Buddha) which was moved from Yongjang-gye in the garden of Gyeongju National Museum. The head was cemented on the body of the statue in 1974 before its display. Recently, we have done another conservation work on the statue because microbes and the other contaminants have built up on the surface and the restored part of the statue has loosened again. By taking r-ray pictures, we have checked the structure of the statue, especially the connected part and removed old materials used for the previous restoration. We reinforced the cracked parts, cleaned the surface, and then restored the statue. We finished the conservation process by adjusting the color.

• Journal of the Korean Geographical Society
• /
• v.47 no.6
• /
• pp.809-824
• /
• 2012

Stone cultural heritages quantitatively as well as qualitatively occupy a large proportion in the designated heritages in Korea. The Stone Buddha statue in the Gulbulsa temple site, designated as the No. 121 treasure in 1935, is located in the southwestern slope of Mt. Sogeumgang, Dongcheon-dong, Gyeongju-si, Gyeongbuk Province and Buddhist images are sculptured on four sides of a 3.5m-tall gigantic rock. The damage states result from the weathering degree and indicate high correlation with the water contents. The water contents in the Stone Buddha of Gulbulsa temple site are highest at the east side and then decrease in order of north, south and west sides. These are proportional to the durations of sunshine. Moreover, the Stone Buddha of Gulbulsa temple site with dense joints, repaired areas and vegetated areas by lichens shows high water contents and damage states.

• Korean Journal of Heritage: History & Science
• /
• v.52 no.4
• /
• pp.246-263
• /
• 2019

The stone Buddha statue of Sangunsa Temple at Bukhansan in Goyang, Gyeonggi Province, is an excellent example of stone Buddha statues created in the late 15th century. On the base of the figure, there is an inscription, which informs that it was produced in 1497. In recognition of this significance, it was recently designated as a tangible cultural asset in Gyeonggi-do. Thus, this paper tried to evaluate the value of the statue by analyzing iconography and style. The characteristics of a typical 15th-century style that the Buddha statue of Sangunsa Temple shows are the form of ushnisha, the way clothes are worn, the form of a w-shaped chest muscle, and the simple lotus pedestal. On the other hand, the elongation of the waist and the disappearance of the waistband on undergarments are new forms of Buddha statues in the 16th century. Besides, parting the hair in the middle of the head and leaf-shaped short ribbon draped on undergarments are unique features that only appear on the statue of Sangunsa Temple. Sangunsa has been known to be built in the early 18th century based on Bukanji compiled by Seongneung in 1745, and Bongeunbonmalsaji composed in 1943. However, the statue was created in the late 15th century, before the establishment of the temple in the early 18th century. Therefore, this paper briefly reviewed the history of Sangunsa Temple, focusing on the initial period, referring to the historical sites and the relics that were passed on to the temple, as well as the literature records. The data newly referred to in the study are as follows: Sangunsa Stone Pagoda, presumed to be from the Goryeo Dynasty; the Stone Buddha Statue of Sangunsa; Wooden Amita Triad Buddha Statue of Sangunsa. According to the data and contrary to previously-held beliefs, Sangunsa Temple is believed to have been operating since the Goryeo Dynasty. It can be inferred through analysis of the stone Buddha statue of Sangunsa Temple that the size of the Temple before the 18th century was not very large.

• Korean Journal of Heritage: History & Science
• /
• v.43 no.3
• /
• pp.242-281
• /
• 2010

There are a large number of Buddhist cultural relics in Mt. Namsan. The cultural relics carry the spirit of people of Shila who dream of Buddhist Elysium and the establishment of Buddhist nation. In the valley and the top of the mountain and on various rock cliff, stone statues of Buddha and stone pagodas stand in harmony with nature. For that reason, Mt. Namsan is called an open-air museum. And it played an important role in establishing 'The UNESCO World Heritage' status for Gyeongdju in December 2000. But sadly, there are many stone relics that have eroded away and damaged from collapsing in the passage of time. The seated stone statue of Buddha in Samreoung valley of Mt. Namsan is one of them. It was created between the 8th and 9th century, and restored without much care nor extensive historical research in 1923. As a result, The face of the Buddha remained with concrete mortar and its nimbus fallen backward and destroyed. Therefore, restoration and repair as well as creation of a statue environment for the statue were urgent. So we immediately started in restoration and repair. First, through the archaeological excavation around the stone Buddha, we carried the stone Buddha on the original position. In order to restore the statues to its original glory created by the Unified Shila Dynasty, we created a restoration plan in corporation with art historians and historians, then restored the jaw and the damage nimbus. Second, we made the weathering & damage map of the stone Buddha. In order to prevent second damage, we cleaned the surface of contaminants with distilled water. Third, we studied restoration method to prevent artificial damage. We recreated parts of his face and halo. Then each parts of the statue were restored to their original position. In the whole process of restoration, we tried to use traditional techniques.

• Journal of Conservation Science
• /
• v.37 no.6
• /
• pp.778-790
• /
• 2021

The Stone Seated Buddha Triad and Stone Standing Buddha in Bijung-ri are state-designated heritage (treasure) statues having the Buddha style of the Goryeo dynasty from the 6th century. Conservation scientific investigations were conducted to understand the preservation status of these stone Buddha statues and to establish a conservation plan. The Stone Seated Buddha Triad and Stone Standing Buddha are composed of fine-medium grained biotite granite, which is considered to be of the same origin owing to their low magnetic susceptibility distribution of less than 0.2 (×10^-3 SI unit) and similar mineral characteristics. The Stone Seated Buddha Triad has highly homogenous mineral composition and particle size, whole-rock magnetic susceptibility, and geochemical characteristics very similar to those of the nearby outcrop. It was confirmed that a combination of physical, chemical, and biological factors affects the Stone Buddha statues. In particular, both the Stone Seated Buddha Triad and Stone Standing Buddha tend to be chipped off from the front and cracked and scaled from the back. The Stone Standing Buddha located outdoors experiences granularity decomposition and black algae formation, which accelerate the weathering under unfavorable conservation environments. The result of non-destructive physical property diagnosis using ultrasonic velocity showed that both the Stone Seated Buddha Triad and Stone Standing Buddha have been completely weathered (CW), indicating very poor physical properties.

• ALGAE
• /
• v.20 no.4
• /
• pp.295-298
• /
• 2005

The growth of subaerial microalgae on historic buildings or various cultural properties causes discoloration and physico-chemical deterioration of the surfaces. We collected a subaerial chlorophyte, Chlorella sp., from the stone Standing Buddha statue at Jungwon Miruksazi, which is a national treasure of Korea, and found dormant, thickwalled spores with regular pentagonal ornamentation along with the vegetative Chlorella cells. The morphology of Chlorella resting spores was compared to that of the other green algal resting cells. The ornamented spores and smooth-walled vegetative cells revived in 2 weeks in a liquid freshwater medium and started reproduction by autospores. To our knowledge, the ability of Chlorella to form ornamented dormant spores in drought condition was not previously recorded. The ornamentation of spores would supplement taxonomic characteristics of this genus.

• Journal of the Korean Home Economics Association
• /
• v.33 no.5
• /
• pp.211-219
• /
• 1995

In this study of the Buddhist Stone Statues in Namsan in Kyungju. We have found out interesting facts as follow. This study is focused on the way the Buddhist Statues wear the robes. There are two basical types of wearing ; Tongkyun and Pyundanwookyun. In Silla, these types of wearing has been developed into its unique types based on the traditional culture. The stone Buddhist images show seven types of wearing based on the standard ones of Tongkyun and Pyundanwookyun. This variety in wearing rests on the various of Sungkari(Samghathi) and Bokgyenui(Samkaksika) and a chest sash which fixes Niwonsung(Nivasana). There are three cases inferred from the seven types of wearing the Buddha's robes : (1)Tonkyun type A: The only outer wear Sungkari(Samghathi) was put on as Tongkyun type. We can't find out any Bokgyenui(Samkaksika) or the chest sash of Niwonsung(Nivasana). (2)Tongkyun type B: Bokgyenui(Samkaksika) is put on the chest of Statue in Sungkari(Samghathi). (3)Tongkyun type C: This type is similar to Tonkyun type A, except that the end of the robe dangled down straight to the right side. (4)Tongkyun type D: Bokgyenui(Samkaksika) is bound with a chest sash. (5)Tongkyun type C: The robe is tied on the left shoulder as a cord and Bokgyenui(Samkaksika) is bound with a chest sash. (6)Pyundanwookyun type A: The robe dangled down from the left shoulder to the right armpit diagonally, so left shoulder is naked. (7)Pyundanwookyun type B: This type is similiar to Pyundanwookyun type A, but the end of Sungkari(Samghathi) is bound up to the left shoulder again. Considering above, the robe types of Buddha seem to have something to do with those of the Silla people: The chest sash is similar to the adjustment of Jeogori(the traditional jacket) of the Silla, and the typing cord in Buddha's robe corresponds to that of the traditional types.