Geumgangsa Temple Site, Buyeo

Basic information

Designation

Historic Site No.435

Category

유적지

Designated year

2001

Location

부여군, 충청남도— 충남 부여군 은산면 금공리 13-1번지 외

Coordinates

36.341172, 126.857596

The Geumgangsa Temple Site has a long history since the temple was first built during the Baekje Dynasty, continuing to be active until Unified Silla and Goryeo Dynasty. The two excavations in 1964 and in 1966 confirmed that the temple was rebuilt twice, and that the site was that of a ruined temple based on the “Geumgangsa” inscription on a roof tile. The original temple was laid out in the Baekje style with one wooden pagoda and one main hall, but the buildings were arranged along the east-west axis rather than the north-south one. From the east, the structures were laid out in order of the main gate, pagoda, main hall, and lecture hall, with corridors around the buildings from the main gate to the lecture hall. As for the architecture, the base differed from building to building; in the case of the main hall, however, it was made with foundation stones at the bottom, side stones, and cap stones on top and posts at the four corners. For the lecture hall and monks’ rooms, the base was made with slabs and no foundation stones. The stylobate for the wooden pagoda is assumed to have had two tiers; the central pillar foundation inside the pagoda -- found some six cheok (approximately 1.8m) underground -- was made of natural weathered bedrock, which is an unusual feature. This temple site is the first one found, showing evidence of the method of hardening and heaping earth to make a foundation for the bases of structures including the pagoda, main hall, and main gate; hence its high value in art history.

Location