[Treasures from National Museum of Korea] Stone Standing Maitreya Bodhisa...

Stone Standing Maitreya Bodhisattva from Gamsansa

Period - Unified Silla (668–935)

Provenance - North Gyeongsang Province

Materials - Granite

Dimensions - 270 cm in height

Designation - National Treasure 81

In the late seventh century, Silla unified the three kingdoms of Silla, Baekje and Goguryeo, ushering in the Unified Silla period (676-935). An era of relative stability and prosperity, it saw Korean Buddhism and Buddhist art reach new heights.

The granite statues of Maitreya and Amitabha were moved in 1915 from the former site of Gamsansa in Gyeongju, the ancient capital of Silla, in what is now North Gyeongsang Province. Carved from hard granite with hammer and chisel, the statue demonstrates the remarkable skill of Silla stone sculptors. Despite the difficulty of the material, the figure has finely rendered details and elaborate ornamentation.

The Maitreya, with a warm expression, bends slightly at the waist, while the Amitabha stands upright with a more solemn gaze. According to inscriptions on the backs of the statues, they were commissioned in 719 by Kim Ji-seong, a Unified Silla government official, who dedicated the Maitreya to his late mother and the Amitabha to his late father. After Kim’s sudden death the following year, the statues were completed in his memory and for the repose of his soul.