A Portable Shrine and an Amitabha Triad, Enshrined inside a Pagoda Sponsored by a Monk and Lay Devotees
Gilt-bronze Portable Shrine and Gilt-bronze Amitabha Buddha Triad from the Three-story Stone Pagoda of Maegok-dong
  • Joseon Dynasty, 1468
  • Gilt bronze
  • Gwangju National Museum
  • kwa 6923-6933
  • Treasure

This set of a portable shrine and an Amitabha triad was retrieved from a destroyed stone pagoda in Maegok-dong, Suncheon. It was commissioned by a monk, Yilseon of Juksa Temple, and 277 devotees who expressed their collective wishes to be reborn in the Land of Bliss. The communal patronage of Buddhist projects, such as pagodas, bells, and icons, had been common since the late Goryeo period. This triad of Amitabha, Kshitigarbha, and Avalokiteshvara was crafted for a temple far from the capital region. Nonetheless, it still exhibits superb artistry, retaining the cultural influences from Tibetan Buddhist art of Ming China.