Stone Lantern of Silsangsa Temple, Namwon

Basic information

Designation

Treasure No.35

Category

Sites & Pagodas

Era

통일신라시대

Designated year

1963

Location

남원시, 전북특별자치도— 전북 남원시 산내면 입석길 94-129, 실상사 (입석리)

Coordinates

35.416805, 127.635148

This stone lantern stands in front of Daegwangmyeongjeon Hall, the main hall of Silsangsa Temple, which is located near the basin to the west of Cheonwangbong Peak of Jirisan Mountain. The temple was built in 828 (the third year of the reign of King Heungdeok of the Silla Dynasty) when Hong Cheok established the Buddhist sect of Silsangsan Mountain as one of the nine mountains of the Zen Order. With the stone globe at its center, the stone lantern consists of a three-tier base at the bottom and a roof with an ornament at the top. The stone lantern is octagonal in form, and symmetrically carved with eight petals on the face and bottom of the platform. The stone globe is octagonal in shape and has a window on each side. The eight edges of the roof stone turn upward and are embossed with floral patterns. The ornament at the top is carved magnificently, displaying the decorative style of the late Unified Silla Period. As the stone lantern is very tall, a stone ladder was required to light the lantern. Judging by the ostentatious engraving of the floral patterns on the edge of the roof stone and the lotus flower on the base, the lantern is thought to have been built in the middle of the ninth century, in the late Unified Silla Period.

Location