Stone Seated Buddha in Hwanam-ri, Yeongcheon

This stone statue depicts Vairocana, the Cosmic Buddha, who is the personification of the absolute universal truth. It is presumed to have been made at the turn of the Unified Silla (668-935) and Goryeo (918-1392) periods.

This statue was discovered in 1980 when the three-story stone pagoda (Treasure No. 675) in front of Hangwangsa Temple’s main worship hall was dismantled for repair. The statue was found enshrined inside the base of the pagoda. It is common to find small statues enshrines inside pagodas, but it is very rare to find such a statue as large as this one inside a pagoda.

The hand gesture, in which the right hand clasps the left index finger, is a distinguishing feature of Vairocana. The facial features of the statue are worn away. The flat and wide protuberance on the top of the head, the small body frame, the round face, the symmetrical folds of the robe, and the three-tiered octagonal lotus pedestal are typical features of late 9th-century Buddhist statues.

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