Page 224 - Christies Japanese and Korean Art Sept 22 2020 NYC

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A GILT-BRONZE STANDING FIGURE OF BUDDHA he wore in his youth as a crown prince, symbolize his rejection
of worldly life and his embrace of the religious life. He may be
THREE KINGDOMS PERIOD, BAEKJE (C. 18 BC-AD 660), FIRST HALF
7TH CENTURY represented with a shaven pate, as in the present sculpture, or with
short hair arranged in wavy locks or in small, snail-shell curls. The
Standing on a three-tier lotus plinth, with right arm raised in the
abhayamudra, the gesture of besowing protection, and varadamudra, sacred texts, or sutras, state that he bears the “Thirty-two Marks
the gesture of compassion, and in drapery falling in u-shaped folds; of a Great Man”; among those marks, the ones typically portrayed
residue of mounting pegs at the back of the head are the urna, or circular mark at the center of the forehead, the
6¿ in. (15.6 cm.) high webbed fingers and toes, and the previously mentioned ushnisha.
Gilding not only makes the image suitable for presentation to a
$50,000-70,000 deity but symbolizes the light that, according to the sutras, radiates
from his body, another of the marks of a great man. The tenon
PROVENANCE: projecting from the back of the head indicates that a mandorla
Japanese Private Collection originally backed this sculpture; the mandorla rested on the top
of the flat lotus base, just behind the feet, and was held in place
LITERATURE:
Matsubara Saburo, Kankoku kondobutsu Kenkyu (Study of Korean gilt by the tenon at the back of the head. The mandorla amplified
bronze Buddhist figures), 1985, p. 46 a, b and c. the light radiating from the Buddha’s body and thus further
accentuated his divine status.
Although they bear a superficial resemblance to those from the Silla
Although gilt bronze Buddhist sculptures from Korea’s Silla Kingdom, sculptures from Baekje stand apart due to their distinctive
Kingdom are well-known, ones from Korea’s Baekje Kingdom (c. faces, robes, and bases. The heads of Baekje Buddhas typically are
18 BC–AD 660) are rare and thus are only sparsely represented in large in proportion to the body, for example, just as the shoulders
museum and private collections. Among the few Baekje sculptures are narrow in relation to the head. Baekje Buddhas often are shown
to come to market in recent years, this well-known, gilt bronze with a shaven pate, as revealed by the present Buddha as well as by
standing Buddha is important for its beauty and rarity, as well as the small stone seated, meditating Buddha from Gunsu-ri, Buyeo,
for its contribution in expanding our understanding of the full now in the collection of the National Museum of Korea, Seoul
spectrum of sculpture produced during Korea’s Three Kingdoms (M-000435-00003), and by the famous rock-cut Buddhist Triad
period. Matsubara Sabur (1918–1999), the eminent, twentieth- at Seosan in South Chungcheong province. Rather distinctively,
century specialist in Chinese and Korean Buddhist sculpture, the mouth of Baekje Buddhas is often unusually wide, as in
examined this Baekje Buddha and published it in his monumental this sculpture, resulting in a rather square chin. In addition, the
1985 study of Korean gilt bronzes. ushnisha, nose, and eyes of Baekje Buddhas tend to be large, as
witnessed by both the present sculpture and the Buddha in the
The earliest Korean Buddhist sculptures, which date to the late
Seosan Triad; in fact, the large, wide, domical ushnisha, which
fourth or early fifth century, occur in gilt bronze and fired clay and
was influenced by Chinese sculptures produced the Northern Qi
closely follow contemporaneous Chinese models. By the seventh
dynasty (550–577), anticipates the style of the Unified Silla period
century, however, distinctive Korean styles and iconographic
and points to a date during the first half of the seventh century as
types had emerged as evinced by the world-renowned gilt bronze
this sculpture’s date of manufacture.
sculpture representing the Pensive Bodhisattva Maitreya (National
Treasure no. 83; museum no. Deoksu 3312) now in the collection In Baekje Buddhas, the outer robe—i.e., the sanghati—usually
of the National Museum of Korea, Seoul. covers both shoulders and falls to the ankles in repeating,
concentric, U-shaped folds, reflecting influence from Chinese
This sculpture represents a Buddha standing with his weight evenly
sculpture of the Northern Qi and Sui (581–618) dynasties. The
distributed on both legs, his right hand raised, his left hand lowered.
bottom edge of the lower robe—i.e., the antaravasaka, or dhoti-
“Buddha” means “the Enlightened One” and refers to an individual
like garment that drapes the hips and legs—appears at the ankles,
who has attained enlightenment and entered into nirvana. In fact,
immediately below the edge of the outer robe, but the inner
the Buddha’s diagnostic iconographic symbol is the ushnisha, that
robe—the uttarasanga that traditionally covers the left shoulder and
is, the cranial protuberance atop his head that emblemizes the
diagonally crosses the chest—frequently is entirely concealed and
expanded wisdom that he gained at his enlightenment. Presented
thus not visible, as in this sculpture.
in the guise of a monk, the Buddha generally is depicted with a
single head, two arms, and two legs; he may be shown standing or Unlike many early Korean sculptures, this Buddha retains its
seated and always displays a benevolent countenance. He wears a original base. As evinced by this example, the bases of Baekje
monk’s robes and may be shown either barefoot or with sandals. Buddhas often assume the form of an inverted lotus blossom; in
Buddhas typically are portrayed without jewelry, though particular fact, the blossom is right side up, rather than inverted, but its petals
manifestations of the Buddha may wear crowns and other jewelry, project downward, thereby exposing the conical seedpod on which
particularly those Buddhas associated with the mandala. His the Buddha stands. As in this sculpture, Baekje bases sometimes
distended earlobes, which resulted from the heavy earrings that include an unembellished ring at the bottom.