The Gyeongju National Museum is a museum in Gyeongju, North Gyeongsang
Province, South Korea. Its holdings are largely devoted to relics of the Silla
kingdom, of which Gyeongju was the capital.
The museum is located immediately adjacent to the royal tomb complex, in an
area which also includes the Gyerim forest, Cheomseongdae observatory,
Banwolseong palace, and Anapji Pond.
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Entering Gyeongju National Museum.
There are a number of national museums in key locations across Korea,
but the collection of this museum is especially important because it
allows the general public, archaeologists, and historians to understand
the rise of civilization in southeast Korea.
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Bell of King Seongdeok.
The Bell of King Seongdeok is a large bronze bell, the largest extant
bell in Korea.
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The full Korean name means "Sacred (or Divine) Bell of King Seongdeok
the Great."
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It was also known as the Emille Bell, after a legend about its
casting, and as the Bell of Bongdeoksa Temple, where it was first
housed.
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See more at
Bell of King Seongdeok - Wikipedia.
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Three-story Pagoda from Goseonsa Temple Site.
This three-story stone pagoda from the Goseonsa Temple site, along with
the east and west three-story stone pagodas in Gameunsa Temple, is
thought to represent the original form of common stone pagodas from the
Unified Silla Period.
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A number of stone plates were assembled to form both the two-tiered
base and the pagoda portion of the third story.
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The first story bears engravings of a guardian on all four sides, and
small holes on the surface indicate where gilt-bronze plates would
have been attached.
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Before the stone pagoda was moved, a sarira casket was found inside
the third story, but the whereabouts of the reliquary is unknown.
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Restored Dabo Pagoda.
In the forecourt of the National Gyeongju Museum, there is a replica of
the restored Dabo Pagoda before Japanese Colonial Period.
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A replica of the Dabo Pagoda, which features stone lions placed at the
four corners of the base, is also on display at the Hoam Museum of Art
in Yongin, Gyeonggi, but only the original one at Bulguksa Temple has
a stone lion sitting in the wrong place.
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“Prototype” gold headband crown.
Silla, 12.8 cm high, Gyo-dong, Gyeongju (Gyeongju National Museum);.
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The development of Silla headband crowns can be divided into three
stages, based on the style of the decorative uprights.
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The crowns of the first stage have only three straight uprights with
symmetrical branches. In most crowns of this phase, the symmetrical
branches of the uprights are slanted at a relatively natural angle,
rather than extending up at a precise right angle.
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This phase has been categorized as the “prototype” style of crown,
with the representative example being the gold crown from Gyo-dong,
Gyeongju. The king’s gilt-bronze crown from the south mound of
Hwangnamdaechong Tomb is the latest known example of a Silla prototype
crown.
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Significantly, although this crown has only three uprights with
symmetrical branches, the branches extend up at right angles,
signaling the transition to the next phase.
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Gold crown, jewellery and belts.
Silla Gold crown, jewellery and belts with belt hangings made of gold
and some with jade excavated from the Silla mound tombs.
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Gyerim-ro dagger and sheath.
The Gyerim-ro Dagger and Sheath are ornately decorated treasures that
were excavated from an ancient Korean tomb from the Silla Kingdom (57 BC
– 935 AD) in 1973.
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The dagger and sheath are made up of gold, decorated with elaborate,
colorful glass and garnet jewel inlays. The treasure is 14 1/8 in. (36
cm) in length.
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They are understood to originate from the Black Sea area, testifying
to the expansiveness of the Silk Road network in the ancient world.
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See more at
Gyerim-ro dagger and sheath - Wikipedia.
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Medicine Buddha.
Korean gilt copper Medicine Buddha, late 7th-early 8th century.
Gyeongju.
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Bhaisajyaguru is the Buddha of healing and medicine in Mahayana
Buddhism.
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Commonly referred to as the "Medicine Buddha", he is described as a
doctor who cures suffering using the medicine of his teachings.
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See more at
Bhaisajyaguru - Wikipedia.
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Bhaisaiyaguru Buddha.
Baengnyulsa Temple, Dongcheon-dong, Gyeongju. Unified Silla, Late 8th C.
H.: 179.0㎝.
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The statue was moved to the museum from Baengnyulsa Temple in Mt.
Sogeumgangsan, Gyeongju, in 1930.
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Baengnyulsa Temple is the birthplace of the legend of Yi Cha-don, an
early Buddhist martyr, and is considered a sacred Buddhist temple of
great tradition.
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This Bhaisajyaguru Buddha, along with the Amitabha Buddha and
Vairocana Buddha in Bulguksa Temple, is widely regarded as the
representative gilt-bronze Buddha statue of the Unified Silla Period.
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This life-size statue is extraordinarily detailed in its cast and
sculpting, and the overall proportion of the body parts is exemplary.
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The restrained posture and immaculate rendering of the creases in the
clothing set it apart from the style of the mid-8th century, which
tended to emphasize the voluminous curves of the body parts. Thus, it
is estimated to be from the late 8th century.
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Stone Seated Bhaisajyaguru Buddha.
Unified Silla (668~935). H 305.5cm. Gyeongju National Museum.
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This statue was moved to the museum from Yongjanggol Valley, Mt.
Namsan.
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The Bhaisajyaguru Buddha sits in the Padmasanam (lotus) posture on an
elaborate two-tiered lotus pedestal, holding his right hand in the
Bhumisparsa mudra and carrying a medicine bottle in his left hand.
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After the statue was moved from its former museum in Dongbu-dong in
1975, the head and part of the halo were reassembled and restored to
their current condition, although the face remains badly damaged.
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The head has a prominent Ushnisha on top, and there is an inscription
of the Three Ways on the neck.
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The pear-shaped halo is embossed with vine and flame designs, while
the pedestal is decorated with lotus flower designs.
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Based on the less vibrant expression of the body parts and the
heightened emphasis of the decoration, as demonstrated in the
elaborate and even complicated designs on the halo, the statue is
estimated to be from the end of the 8th century or the beginning of
the 9th century.
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People wearing hanbok.
The hanbok is a traditional clothing of the Korean people.
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Koreans have worn hanbok since antiquity. The earliest visual
depictions of hanbok can be traced back to the Three Kingdoms
of Korea period (57 BC to 668 AD).
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The clothes are also depicted on tomb murals from the Goguryeo period
(4th to 6th century AD), with the basic structure of the
hanbok established since at latest this period.
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The ancient hanbok consisted of a jeogori (top),
baji (pants), chima (skirt), and the po (coat).
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Modern hanbok are typically patterned after the hanbok worn in
the Joseon dynasty, especially those worn by the nobility and royalty.
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See more at
Hanbok - Wikipedia.
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See also
Source
Location
