Gilt-bronze Standing Avalokitesvara Bodhisattva from Samyang-dong, Seoul

Basic information

Designation

National Treasure No.127

Category

Sculpture

Era

삼국시대

Designated year

1968

Location

용산구, 서울특별시— 서울특별시 용산구 서빙고로 137 (용산동6가, 국립중앙박물관)

Coordinates

37.524041, 126.980350

The statue (height: 20.7cm) was found in Samyang-dong, Dobong-gu, Seoul in 1967. At present, it is kept at the National Museum of Korea. It shows a crack on the upper part of the ankle, with a small part of the leftmost side of the robe torn off. It wears a crown with three pyramid-shaped figures set up at the side. It has a plump face wearing a gentle smile, including narrow shoulders as well as a protruding belly. A double layer of robe covering the belly and the lap hangs like the letter “U.” The legs are covered by the thick robe. Robe wrinkles are expressed simply with a few lines. The right hand holds a kundika bottle. The left hand is held upward, with the thumb and the forefinger extended outward, positioned like the letter “V.” The pedestal on which the statue stands is carved with lotus flower patterns facing upside down. The sharp ends of the lotus flower patterns are in stark contrast with the overall soft appearance of the statue. The shape of a Buddha inscribed on the pyramid-shaped figures attached to the crown and the kundika bottle held on the right hand show that it is an Avalokitesvara Bodhisattva image. The statue was presumed to have been made in the early 7th Century based on the plump body and the U-shaped robe wrinkles. It is a precious material associated with the Avalokitesvara faith prevalent in the late Three-Kingdoms Period (circa 57BC-668 AD).

Location