• Journal of Korean Association for Spatial Structures
• /
• v.14 no.2
• /
• pp.41-50
• /
• 2014

The stone pagoda of Mireuk temple site is currently restoring through the repairing process. This stone pagoda has the various construction types in the inner and outer space. Therefore, the stress concentration and structural behavior need to be considered through the analysis of various construction patterns. To this end, this study presents the structural modelling and analysis considering the discrete element analysis technique to solve the discontinuum behavior between the stone elements. Also, this study performs the structural performance evaluation through the various design variables for the safety of stone pagoda. Through the analysis results, we can find out the small stress concentration in the several members. But, because the stresses and displacements are relatively small, we can secure the safety of the whole structure.

• Korean Journal of Heritage: History & Science
• /
• v.52 no.2
• /
• pp.196-219
• /
• 2019

According to the Samguk Yusa, the nine-story wooden pagoda at Hwangnyongsa Temple was built by a Baekje artisan named Abiji in 645. Until the temple was burnt down completely during the Mongol invasion of Korea in 1238, it was the greatest symbol of the spiritual culture of the Korean people at that time and played an important role in the development of Buddhist thought in the country for about 700 years. At present, the only remaining features of Hwangnyongsa Temple, which is now in ruins, are the pagoda's stylobate and several foundation stones. In the past, many researchers made diverse inferences concerning the restoration of the original structure and the overall architecture of the wooden pagoda at Hwangnyongsa Temple, based on written records and excavation data. However, this information, together with the remaining external structure of the pagoda site and the assumption that it was a simple wooden structure, actually suggest that it was a rectangular-shaped nine-story pagoda. It is assumed that such ideas were suggested at a time when there was a lack of relevant data and limited knowledge on the subject, as well as insufficient information about the technical lineage of the wooden pagoda at Hwangnyongsa Temple; therefore, these ideas should be revised in respect of the discovery of new data and an improved level of awareness about the structural features of large ancient Buddhist pagodas. This study focused on the necessity of raising awareness of the lineage and structure of the wooden pagoda at Hwangnyongsa Temple and gaining a broader understanding of the structural system of ancient Buddhist pagodas in East Asia. The study is based on a reanalysis of data about the site of the wooden pagoda obtained through research on the restoration of Hwangnyongsa Temple, which has been ongoing since 2005. It is estimated that the wooden pagoda underwent at least two large-scale repairs between the Unified Silla and Goryeo periods, during which the size of the stylobate and the floor plan were changed and, accordingly, the upper structure was modified to a significant degree. Judging by the features discovered during excavation and investigation, traces relating to the nine-story wooden pagoda built during the Three Kingdoms Period include the earth on which the stylobate was built and the central pillar's supporting stone, which had been reinstalled using the rammed earth technique, as well as other foundation stones and stylobate stone materials that most probably date back to the ninth century or earlier. It seems that the foundation stones and stylobate stone materials were new when the reliquaries were enshrined again in the pagoda after the Unified Silla period, so the first story and upper structure would have been of a markedly different size to those of the original wooden pagoda. In addition, during the Goryeo period, these foundation stones were rearranged, and the cover stone was newly installed; therefore, the pagoda would seem to have undergone significant changes in size and structure compared to previous periods. Consequently, the actual structure of the original wooden pagoda at Hwangnyongsa Temple should be understood in terms of the changes in large Buddhist pagodas built in East Asia at that time, and the technical lineage should start with the large Buddhist pagodas of the Baekje dynasty, which were influenced by the Northern dynasty of China. Furthermore, based on the archeological data obtained from the analysis of the images of the nine-story rock-carved pagoda depicted on the Rock-carved Buddhas in Tapgok Valley at Namsan Mountain in Gyeongju, and the gilt-bronze rail fragments excavated from the lecture hall at the site of Hwangnyongsa Temple, the wooden pagoda would appear to have originally been an octagonal nine-story pagoda with a dual structure, rather than a simple rectangular wooden structure.

• MISULJARYO - National Museum of Korea Art Journal
• /
• v.101
• /
• pp.12-46
• /
• 2022

Completed in 1467, the Thirteen-story Stone Pagoda of Wongaksa Temple is the last Buddhist pagoda erected at the center of the capital (present-day Seoul) of the Joseon Dynasty. It was commissioned by King Sejo, the final Korean king to favor Buddhism. In this paper, I aim to examine King Sejo's intentions behind celebrating the tenth anniversary of his enthronement with the construction of the thirteen-story stone pagoda in the central area of the capital and the enshrinement of sarira from Shakyamuni Buddha and the Newly Translated Sutra of Perfect Enlightenment (圓覺經). This paper provides a summary of this examination and suggests future research directions. The second chapter of the paper discusses the scriptural background for thirteen-story stone pagodas from multiple perspectives. I was the first to specify the Latter Part of the Nirvana Sutra (大般涅槃經後分) as the most direct and fundamental scripture for the erection of a thirteen-story stone pagoda. I also found that this sutra was translated in Central Java in the latter half of the seventh century and was then circulated in East Asia. Moreover, I focused on the so-called Kanishka-style stupa as the origin of thirteen-story stone pagodas and provided an overview of thirteen-story stone pagodas built around East Asia, including in Korea. In addition, by consulting Buddhist references, I prove that the thirteen stories symbolize the stages of the practice of asceticism towards enlightenment. In this regard, the number thirteen can be viewed as a special and sacred number to Buddhist devotees. The third chapter explores the Buddhist background of King Sejo's establishment of the Thirteen-story Stone Pagoda of Wongaksa Temple. I studied both the Dictionary of Sanskrit-Chinese Translation of Buddhist Terms (翻譯名義集) (which King Sejo personally purchased in China and published for the first time in Korea) and the Sutra of Perfect Enlightenment. King Sejo involved himself in the first translation of the Sutra of Perfect Enlightenment into Korean. The Dictionary of Sanskrit-Chinese Translation of Buddhist Terms was published in the fourteenth century as a type of Buddhist glossary. King Sejo is presumed to have been introduced to the Latter Part of the Nirvana Sutra, the fundamental scripture regarding thirteen-story pagodas, through the Dictionary of Sanskrit-Chinese Translation of Buddhist Terms, when he was set to erect a pagoda at Wongaksa Temple. King Sejo also enshrined the Newly Translated Sutra of Perfect Enlightenment inside the Wongaksa pagoda as a scripture representing the entire Tripitaka. This enshrined sutra appears to be the vernacular version for which King Sejo participated in the first Korean translation. Furthermore, I assert that the original text of the vernacular version is the Abridged Commentary on the Sutra of Perfect Enlightenment (圓覺經略疏) by Zongmi (宗密, 780-841), different from what has been previously believed. The final chapter of the paper elucidates the political semantics of the establishment of the Wongaksa pagoda by comparing and examining stone pagodas erected at neungsa (陵寺) or jinjeonsawon (眞殿寺院), which were types of temples built to protect the tombs of royal family members near their tombs during the early Joseon period. These stone pagodas include the Thirteen-story Pagoda of Gyeongcheonsa Temple, the Stone Pagoda of Gaegyeongsa Temple, the Stone Pagoda of Yeongyeongsa Temple, and the Multi-story Stone Pagoda of Silleuksa Temple. The comparative analysis of these stone pagodas reveals that King Sejo established the Thirteen-story Stone Pagoda at Wongaksa Temple as a political emblem to legitimize his succession to the throne. In this paper, I attempt to better understand the scriptural and political semantics of the Wongaksa pagoda as a thirteen-story pagoda. By providing a Korean case study, this attempt will contribute to the understanding of Buddhist pagoda culture that reached its peak during the late Goryeo and early Joseon periods. It also contributes to the research on thirteen-story pagodas in East Asia that originated with Kanishka stupa and were based on the Latter Part of the Nirvana Sutra.

• 보존과학연구
• /
• s.25
• /
• pp.75-92
• /
• 2004

The conservation treatments of 10-storied pagoda in the temple of Kyoungchunsa is progressed favorably to come to the finish since 1995. Most of all, the important conservation treatments are stone crack, exfoliation and partial form modification. This pagoda has been made up a complicated structure constructed using 142 stones. Therefore, the stone crack and exfoliation have been occurred as very varied forms. Especially, the stylobate of the pagoda has 19 substitution stones of 48 stones, which is40% of modern stone substitution. It is supposed that there is serious weathering on the stones. The other stones, which are no substitution stones, have some kinds of weathering and so we carried out inside replenishment and partial outside reconstruction of crack stones using high molecular resin and substitution stone. The stone of each storey has also partial difference, but the condition of serious weathering on the whole. We can detect general degree through treatment of high molecule resin or distribution research of contaminated material on 10-storied pagoda in the temple of Kyoungchunsa. Especially, we are able to analyze general weathering degree and know details weathering of each storey or direction for the difference of replenishment quantity and different pattern of stone crack degree. Also, the distribution research will accomplish very important parts of examining environment effects and use as research data of cultural heritage conservation field.

• Journal of architectural history
• /
• v.22 no.6
• /
• pp.47-58
• /
• 2013

The purpose of this study is to analyze the cause of damage to the three storied stone pagoda of Bulguksa temple in GyeongJu. This report is attempted to making reinforcement and conservation plan through investigating and analyzing the cause of damage to that. The damage is caused by occurring of stress, degrading of stone strength, changing of underground soil structure, natural disasters and so on. Compressive stress, shear stress, bending stress and lateral pressure affected to the pagoda since built up. Ultrasonic examination data tells the strength of the stone. According to this result, strength of the stereobate stone materials is enough to support the weight of the upper ones. But we could found many other factors of the damage could consider, for example the problems occurred on building the pagoda construction and the weakness of the stone material(soft rock). And many environmental factors being changed in soil structure(subsidence of soil and degradation of bearing power of soil and freezing and melting of soil) can be seen as the cause of the damage. Natural disasters like earthquake, lightning and heavy rain were also thought to give direct impact to the damage. At last Concentration of compressive stress caused the crack and exfoliation on the stone materials and shear stress, bending stress and lateral pressure were main causes of the stereobate stone materials shearing.

• Journal of architectural history
• /
• v.22 no.1
• /
• pp.29-39
• /
• 2013

The purpose of this paper is to analyze the layout of Early Chinese Buddhist Temples from the Eastern Han Dynasty to the Northern and Southern Dynasties. The results are as follows: 1) In the Eastern Han Dynasty and Three Kingdoms Period, the layout of Temples was a pagoda-centered system which had one-courtyard. The layout of Temples in this period was still under the influence of Indian Temples. 2) In the Western and Eastern Jin Dynasties, the layout of Temples was still a pagoda-centered system. However, many buildings began to appear in Temples after the mid-4th century. In the Eastern Jin Dynasty, Twin pagodas started to appear in Temples. 3) In the Northern and Southern Dynasties, there were many layout types, but the main form was the layout of front Pagoda and rear Buddhist Hall. The layout of Temples in this period was in a transition stage, which evolved from a pagoda-centered Temple which had one-courtyard and after developed into a Buddhist Hall-centered Temple which had multi-courtyard.

• Architectural research
• /
• v.20 no.3
• /
• pp.65-73
• /
• 2018

The restoration of foundations supporting the immense load of the stone pagoda at Mireuksa Temple Site prioritizes securing its structural stability. But so far, rammed earth construction is still not easy to determine the structural stability. This paper aims to emphasize that a scientific experimental study was conducted on a rammed earth construction, to identify its methodology and obtain objective data about structural stability of the foundation work. An experimental study fabricated specimens from the soil that had been removed during the excavation survey, determined the allowable bearing capacity through plate load tests, and compared the results with the predicted stress after reassembly of the stone pagoda to estimate the structural stability. Then, the repair method was selected based on the experimental study result. The evaluation method of the restoration of foundations consisted of an examination of the allowable bearing capacity and settlement. The allowable bearing of the reinforced foundation was more than twice the contact pressure under the stacked stones of the pagoda. The possibility of settlement of the rammed earth foundation soil layer during the pagoda assembly is expected to be very low because the settlement amount of the reformed soil layer is less than half of the settlement of the stabilized existing soil layer.

• Journal of architectural history
• /
• v.30 no.5
• /
• pp.7-16
• /
• 2021

According to 「Hwangnyongsa Temple Central Column Record」 among the remaining documents, under reconstruction the pagoda of Hwangnyongsa&s 9th floor was completed in July 872 on the lunar calendar. At that time, King Kyeongmun worried about sarira under its central column, saying the central column does not move, and then He ordered to lift the central column. So his servants lifted it on November 6th 872 and checked the sarira and put it back on November 25th on the lunar calendar. 「Hwangnyongsa Temple Central Column Record」 did not document how to lift the central column which is tens of meters. therefore, this study inferred the way the central column of the pagoda of Hwangnyongsa was lifted in 872, left as a mystery. For that, this study set various hypotheses and it researched and analyzed hoisting technique that is a way to lift the pagoda of Hwangnyongsa and a column. In conclusion, this study inferred the most suitable hoisting technique for the pagoda of Hwangnyongsa at that time, based on the research and analysis of each chapter.

• Journal of Korean Association for Spatial Structures
• /
• v.19 no.3
• /
• pp.41-50
• /
• 2019

The stone pagoda continued to be damaged by weathering and corrosion over time, and natural disasters such as earthquake are accelerating the destruction of cultural properties. Stone pagoda has discontinuous structure behavior and is very vulnerable to the seismic load acting in lateral direction. It is necessary to analyze various design variables as the contact surface characteristics play an important role in the dynamic behavior of stone pagodas. For this purpose, contact surface characteristics of stone pagoda can be classified according to surface roughness and filler type, and representative model is selected and structural modeling and analysis are performed using the discrete element method. Also, the seismic load according to the repetition period is calculated and the dynamic analysis is performed considering the discontinuous characteristics of the stone pagoda. Finally, the seismic behavior characteristics can be analyzed by the evaluation of stresses, displacements and structural safety.

• Journal of architectural history
• /
• v.1 no.2 s.2
• /
• pp.68-84
• /
• 1992

The development of Buddhist architectures of the Unified Silla period have been generally understood to have paired pagoda instead of one which had been popular until before the unification. Besides the stylistic categorization of paired pagoda system, there had been no further investigation reported concerning whether there was any detailed process of change within the development of paired pagoda style. This paper aims to identify such change inside the development of paired pagoda style, which, externally, seems to be the same pattern of site design maintained throughout the period of Unified Silla that lasted for about three centuries. Since the temple sites of study are in the same pattern of layout, the method of investigation has to be such that can identify the subtle changes that, in external appearance, are not easily discernible. Hence, this research compared the dimensions of important measurement of five temple sites to be able to clarify the process of minor changes. Among many sites of Silla temples, only five were suitable for the research since detailed measurement were possible through field research or the report of excavation. They are the sites of Sachonwang-sa, Mangduk-sa, site of Kunsuri, and Bulguk-sa. Although the five sites have the same style of paired pagoda, it is clear that there were consistant flow of change. Even though the motivation of such change were not strong enough to change the site pattern itself, it resulted continuous minor changes such as the size and location of architectures. The size of image hall, for example, was growing larger and larger as time goes on, while, the size of Pagoda was getting smaller. In the same way, the size of middle gate became smaller while the size of lecture hall became larger, although the rate of change in these cases were not as severe as that of image hall and pagoda. At the same time, pagoda was coming closer to the middle gate leaving larger space in front of the image hall. Such aspect is even more meaningful considering the fact that the pagoda, from the 8th century in Japan and China, moved outside of the major precinct. The image hall, too, moved toward the middle gate slightly so that the space in front of the lecture hall became more spacious. Such changes, of course, were not accidental but they are the same continuous motivation of change that caused the changes before the period of unification. Enlargement of image hall and reduction of pagoda, for example, represent the changing relative importance of religious meaning. Hence, it is evident that one can not easily imterprete the development of one style only by categorizing it to be one same style. In the veiwpoint of the underlying motivation of change, the fact that one style persisted for a certain period of time, does not mean there had been no change, but means that it was the time of motivational accumulation, causing minor changes within the same style, to be able to create major change coming after.