• Journal of architectural history
• /
• v.30 no.6
• /
• pp.71-80
• /
• 2021

This study tries to shed light on character and architectural features of the 2nd construction of Bunhwangsa temple in the mid-8th century. The site of Bunhwangsa Temple is divided into upper and lower areas based on retaining walls running from northwest to southeast, and the main area of the temple centered on Geumdang(the main hall) is located in the upper area. Space composition of the lower area including Wonji(a garden pond) and Gangdang(a lecture hall), is noteworthy in that Bunhwangsa Temple was constructed in a deviating way from rigorous constructional disciplines and used their space efficiently. The Geumdang in the 2nd construction was the largest worship hall with 7×6 bays. The hall was designed to divide its space into two ; the core space was surrounded by outer space. Each gap between columns in the hall was narrowed from center to outer. The main construction of the Geumdang was built as a stable structure with lead-to corridors. This was a much-advanced style than Geumdang at Hwangnyongsa Temple. The Gangdang is presumed to be a large building site as a typical Gangdang style in the Silla era. It was built in the late 9th century and was located in the northern part of the retaining walls. The composition of the middle gate and southern corridors were in double and long corridor style and they were located in front of the 2nd construction. This style coincided in the form of the architectural style of the Hwangnongsa Temple. The 2nd construction of the Bunhwangsa Temple was smaller than the Hwangnongsa Temple. However, it was a prestigious architecture.

• Proceedings of the KSEEG Conference
• /
• 2005.04a
• /
• pp.175-178
• /
• 2005

• Korean Journal of Heritage: History & Science
• /
• v.47 no.4
• /
• pp.136-161
• /
• 2014

This paper investigates the Buddhist sculpture and wall-painting enshrined in the halls of Bunhwangsa (Bunhwang temple) at Gyeongju in the mid-Silla period, which are thoroughly unknown to us except through textual records of Samgukyusa compiled by Priest Ilyeon in the late thirteenth century. According to Samgukyusa, a clay portrait-sculpture of Monk Wonhyo, made by his son Seolchong, was placed in Bunhwangsa. This image faced to the side, because he turned his body toward Seolchong when Seolchong bowed to this image. This story suggests that the portrait image of Wonhyo was most likely made after the Vimalakirti images, which were popular in China from the Six Dynasties period on, especially the Vimalakirti images of the early Tang period, turning his head and body toward Bodhisattva Manjusi seated opposite. The Vimalakirti image of Seokkuram might show the portrait image of Wonhyo. A wall-painting of a Thousand-Armed Avalokiresvara who has a thousand arms with a thousand eyes, called by the name 'Great Mercy with a Thousand Hands', was enshrined on the north wall of the left hall of Bunhwangsa. During King Gyeondeok's reign, Himyeong and her five-year-old blind child prayed before this image, and the blind child gained eyesight. While praying, they sang a song pleading for one of the thousand eyes which the Bodhisattva had in his hands. This song implies that Thousand-Armed Avalokiresvara had a thousand eyes, one painted on each hand. The fact that Thousand-Armed Avalokiresvara of Bunhwangsa was called 'Great Mercy with a Thousand Hands' indicates that this painting was based on the scripture Thousand-Armed Avalokiresvara Sutra translated by Bhagavaddharma in about 655, in the Tang period, which also has 'Great Mercy' in its title. In the year 755, a gilt bronze image of Medicine Buddha was made in Bunhwangsa, using nearly 61 tons of bronze to cast. The huge amount of bronze suggests it includes not only the Buddha statue but many other images such as two attendant Bodhisattvas of Suryaprabha and Candraprabha, Eight Great Bodhisattvas, or Twelve Guardians. Seven images of Medicine Buddha might have been made in accordance with the scriptural text of Seven Medicine Buddha Sutra translated by Monk Yijing. Textual evidence and recent excavation have revealed that seven images of Medicine Buddha and their whole attendant images based on Seven Medicine Buddha Sutra were made in the Nara period from 751 to 762 when Queen Gomyo contructed Sinyakusiji temple for the recovery of her husband Shomu. It is fair to assume that one or seven Medicine Buddhas and a whole group of his (their) attendant images were made for the main hall of Bunhwangsa temple in 755.

• Journal of architectural history
• /
• v.26 no.5
• /
• pp.19-26
• /
• 2017

This paper aimed to identify the architectural characteristics of the chimi excavated from ancient ruins, especially middle gate remains of Bunhwangsa Temple in the Unified Silla period. Middle gate had planned $3{\times}2$ with 295mm measuring unit and gabled building. Detailed study of the shape of chimi of the middle gate restored by related field experts reveals as follows. 1) Height of chimi is 4.5(130.6cm) of Tang's system of measurement classified as large one. 2) The front and back side square hole is made for transverse timber placement. 3) Position of chimi is not the end of the ridge of roof, it moved toward the center. 4) Construction method of chimi is structured with smaller beam and center column. 5) Width and height of the ridge is less than 38cm and 54cm to be approximately, Width and height of the gabled ridge is less than 38cm and 50cm. 6) This chimi is considered to be very unique when compared to existing ancient restored chimis, it is designed to be advantageous to the chimi construction.

• 한국문화재보존과학회:학술대회논문집
• /
• 2005.03a
• /
• pp.48-55
• /
• 2005

• 보존과학연구
• /
• s.35
• /
• pp.57-71
• /
• 2014

As results of this study about the restoration and production techniques of the ridge-end roof tiles excavated from middle gate site in Bunhwangsa Temple, the ridge-end tile was considered that can be combined with four distinguished parts such as a body with upper and lower portions, a back, a belly, and a wing. And also some patterns can be verified. The body and the wing were piled up the coil clay and the back-side was bonded. The pileup process was assumed that three types of wood tools were applied to bond the facing surfaces. After the completion of the pileup process, the entire exterior was retouched by hand. For touching the inside, bare hands or some tools like a wooden branches were used to scratch and to re-face a clay plasterwork. And also, the stamped patterns which produced by framework were bonded to the body. The results from the XRD and the TG-DTA, Tridymite which shows the phase transition in more than $867^{\circ}C$ could not be identified, and also the endothermic reaction peak at $1063^{\circ}C$ showed the result that the alkali feldspar such as the albite was changed into a different mineral at $1050^{\circ}C$. Therefore, the ridge-end tiles can be considered that the firing temperature was below $867^{\circ}C$.

• Journal of Conservation Science
• /
• v.18 s.18
• /
• pp.19-32
• /
• 2006

The stone pagoda of the Bunhwangsa temple made by piling small brick-shaped stones. The major rock forming stone bricks are andesites with variable genesis. Rock properties of the pagoda roof stone suffer partly including multiple peel-offs, exfoliation, decomposition like onion peels, cracks forming round lines and falling off stone pieces. The stylobates and tabernacles in all the four directions the pagoda are mostly composed of granitic rocks. Those rock properties are heavily contaminated by lichens and mosses with the often marks of inorganic contamination by secondary hydrates that are dark black or yellowish brown. Within the four tabernacles and northern pagoda body situated to relatively high humidity. There are even light gray precipitate looking like stalactites between the northern and western rocks of the body Their major minerals are calcite, gypsum and clays. The stone lion standing in the southeast and northeast side are alkali granite, while that in the southwest and northwest lithic tuff. Total rock properties of the pagoda are 9,708 pieces, among the all properties, fractured blocks are 11.0%, fall out blocks are 6.7% and covered blocks by precipitates are 7.0%, respectively. The pagoda has highly deteriorated the functions of the rock properties due to physical, chemical and biological weathering, therefore, we suggest that this pagoda has need to do long term monitoring and synthetic conservation researches.

• Journal of the Mineralogical Society of Korea
• /
• v.31 no.3
• /
• pp.149-159
• /
• 2018

The Gyeongju Bunhwangsa Stone Brick Pagoda, which was built with bricks of andesite, is the oldest brick stone pagoda of Silla period. The damage patterns in the stone pagoda are pollutants such as white crust, black crust, discoloration, soil adsorption, and microorganisms, and repair materials. The damage pattern of structural factors in the Stone Brick Pagoda is a bulging phenomenon. According to the X-ray diffraction analysis, white crust are mainly consist of calcite ($CaCO_3$) and thermonatrite ($Na_2CO_3{\cdot}H_2O$) that evaporite finds in nature. Damage pattern varies depending on location of stone pagoda. The pollutants are first story body of pagoda. The microorganisms are confirmed at base, lion statues, first and second story capstone, and repair materials observed at base. The bulging phenomenon appeared on the first story body of the pagoda. Occupancy rates by damage type were higher in the order of microorganisms, pollutants, repair material, bulging phenomenon, and peeling. The highest percentage of individual damage patterns were black microorganisms (39.3%), followed by lichen (17.9%), discoloration (8.0%), white crust (5.5%), cement mortar (5.1%) and peeling (3.1%).

• 한국문화재보존과학회:학술대회논문집
• /
• 2004.10a
• /
• pp.92-100
• /
• 2004

The host rocks of brick-shaped stone pagoda in the Bunhwangsa temple are lots of kinds andesitic rocks, which has gone through mechanical and chemical weathering. As the overall observation, the pagoda is serious damages by air pollutants, and the northeast parts show the much advanced state of turning white, while the southeast parts are heavily cracked in the materials. The rocks of brick-shaped pagoda body are in a relatively stable condition of weathering and damage except for the abrasion and cracks of the corners. The rocks of the pagoda roof suffer from more symptoms including multiple peel-offs, exfoliation, cracks forming round lines, and falling off stone pieces. The pagoda roof rocks are dominated by the thriving leafy lichens and mosses, especially, there are higher plants (selaginella involvens, dandelions) taking root actively between the brick stones and content mortar. There are even light gray precipitates like stalactites between the rocks of the body, In particular, the 1st and 2nd floor in the east side and the body parts in the north side are the most serious. Their major minerals are calcite, gypsum and clay minerals. The rocks of the stylobate and the tabernacle in all the four directions are composed mainly of granitic rocks. The materials consisting of the tabernacles show the severe splits and distortion, which causes the structural instability. The stylobate rocks are heavily contaminated by some weeds with the often marks of inorganic contamination by secondary hydroxides. The central part of the east stylobate has been sinking, while that of the 1st floor west stylobate is protruded nesting a line of cracks. Accordingly, the inside of the tabernacle is always humid with the constant introduction of rainwater. The stone lion standing in the southeast and northeast side are alkali granite, while that in the southwest and northwest lithic tuff. Each of the stone lion also coated with various colored lichens, mosses, algae, bacteria and bryophyte. The external materials of the pagoda have deteriorated the functions of the rocks and made the loss, falling off, and biological contamination even worse due to the surface weathering. Thus it's urgent to come up with scientific restoration and conservation measures through clinical tests.

• Journal of the Korean Institute of Traditional Landscape Architecture
• /
• v.40 no.2
• /
• pp.44-58
• /
• 2022

Bunhwangsa Temple, Baekryulsa Temple and Sambulsa Temple are not famous cultural heritage area, but they are visited by many tourists and are located in Gyeongju National Park and Gyeongju Historic Areas, so environmental and cultural preservations are required. The purpose of this study is to manage the unique environment and landscape of cultural assets by analysing the invasive alien plant of traditional temple of Gyeongju. The whole flora were summarized as 188 taxa including 73 families, 136 genera, 154 species, 3 subspecies, 11 varieties, 4 forms, 5 hybrids and 12 cultivars., and the landscape plants were 163 taxa and 38 taxa of the invasive alien plants. The 13 taxa of invasive alien plants were planted in three temples. The ecosystem disturbance species were 3 taxa including Rumex acetosella, Lactuca seriola and Symphyotrichum pilosum. Invasive alien plants have artificial causes such as landscape planting, but there are also those that are introduced naturally from outside. The parking lot of the temple is expected to be a major propagation path for invasive alien plants due to the large amount of interference and disturbance. Based on the results of this study, the management plans are suggested as follows. First, it is necessary to use native species suitable for the natural environment and traditional landscape of Korea for landscape planting of traditional temples, and development of planting guidelines centered on cultural properties is required. Second, it is necessary to refrain from planting invasive alien plants because traditional temples are located in an important environment and historically. Third, for the preservation of the temple environment, it is necessary to promptly remove the ecosystem disturbance species. Fourth, in order to express the landscape characteristics of traditional temples, a unique planting plan should be established in consideration of the location environment and historicity.