Wooden Seated Amitabha Buddha and Excavated Relics of Heukseoksa Temple, Yeongju

Heukseoksa Temple is known to have been founded by Uisang (625-702), a Buddhist monk of the Unified Silla period (676-935). The detailed history of the temple is unknown, but after the Japanese invasions of 1592-1598, the power of the temple dramatically declined until it eventually closed. The current temple was built on the site of the old temple in 1945. The temple’s name means"temple of the black stone,"" as there is a black stone in the nearby villiage.

Three important cultural heritages kept at this temple are a wooden seated Amitabha Buddha statue and the relics excavated from inside it (National Treasure), a stone seated buddha statue (Treasure), and a rock-carved buddha triad (Gyeongsangbuk-do Cultural Heritage Material).

The statue of Amitabha, enshrined as the principal buddha of Daeungjeon Hall, was made in 1458 with the support of royal family members of the Joseon dynasty (1392-1910). Originally, it was made as the principal buddha for a temple called Beopcheonsa, but it is said that it was moved to Choamsa Temple during the Korean War (1950-1953), and then again to Heukseoksa Temple. In 1992, various excavated relics were found inside the statue, including records about its creation and a list of names of the people who helped fund the statue. Following an attempted theft in 1999, the statue is now kept in a specially-designed fireproof glass container.

Behind Daeungjeon Hall at the highest point of the temple property, there is a protective pavilion under which the stone seated buddha and rock-carved buddha triad are enshrined.

The stone seated buddha discovered buried in the temple’s vicinity. It is presumed to have been made during the Unified Silla period. The damaged parts of the statue were repaired with lime.

The rock-carved buddha triad depicts a buddha in the center with attendant bodhisattvas to either side. The carving is presumed to have been made at the turn of the Unified Silla and Goryeo (918-1392) periods. Only the head and shoulders of the three figures is carved, which is an unusual depiction. There are traces of red paint on the halos behind the figures.

Source: Korea Heritage Service signboard ↗ · collected 2026-10-08