한국 조각사에서 9세기라는 시기

초록

Among the various Buddhist sculptures of the Unified Silla Kingdom (676- 935) Kingdom, only 36 examples can be conclusively dated to a specific period. Most of these examples are from the eighth century or the latter half of the ninth century. However, there are no Buddhist sculptures that have been definitively dated to the first half of the ninth century. Thus, the absence of verified examples from this period became the impetus for this article, especially as a point of contrast to the discernibly higher number of Buddhist sculptures scattered across the latter half of the ninth century. Of course, there are scholars who purport that Buddhist sculptures were actually made in earnest during the early to mid-ninth century but have not been presently discovered due to a myriad of reasons. On the other hand, there are also scholars who have presented the completely opposing possibility that sculptors did not create any Buddhist sculpture at all during this time. Either way, one must question whether or not it is a coincidence that there is a lack of Buddhist sculptures that can be verifiably dated to the first five decades of the ninth century. Taking into consideration the conspicuously larger number of Buddhist statues attributed to the following five decades, it is highly unlikely that the vacancy of Buddhist statues in the first half of the century was simply something that happened by chance. Of course, to describe the first half of the ninth century as a ‘void’ of Buddhist sculpture does not necessarily mean that there were absolutely no Buddhist statues that were made during this period. Although very few temples were newly founded or constructed in the early to mid-ninth century, preexisting temples continued to operate and maintain their daily affairs, which most likely included the sporadic creation of a Buddhist statue. However, this article focuses on the generally low, and effectively nonexistent, output of Buddhist statues during the first half of the ninth century. This can be partially explained by the great effort required to push forward such an endeavor, which was made exponentially more challenging by the political, social and economic hardships of the period. Therefore, this article sets forth to illustrate that although meaningful statues made during the first half of the century may have survived to the present, the circumstances of their production were at the very least problematic as this was not a time during which the production of Buddhist sculptures thrived in Korea. However, the political and economic situation stabilized after the mid-ninth century, improving the overall situation of the Silla Kingdom. The ameliorated circumstances ushered in a second golden age of Buddhist sculpture during the reign of King Gyeongmun (861- 875) who claimed to be a cakravartin (Wheel-Turning King). This is the most likely production period for the three major gilt-bronze Buddha statues of the Unified Silla Kingdom which consist of the Gilt-bronze Standing Buddha Statue of Baengnyul Temple as well as the two Gilt-bronze Buddha Statues of Bulguk Temple. Interestingly, there is a distinct difference between the materials used to make Buddhist statues for the Silla royal capital versus examples made for the surrounding areas. Buddhist statues made from iron were created in every region across the country except for the royal capital during the latter half of the ninth century. This indicates that there was a recognizable separation between the two materials of copper and iron in the Unified Silla Kingdom. Copper was reserved for Buddhist statues created and enshrined in the royal capital of Silla while iron was widely used in every other region. During this period, there were also examples of large-scale iron Buddhist statues created in regions outside of the royal capital that were gilded to imitate the appearance of gilt-bronze Buddhist statues. Thus, it is highly probable that the three major gilt-bronze Buddha statues of the Unified Silla Kingdom, or at least similarly monumental examples, were created in the royal capital during the latter half of the ninth century and inspired imitations throughout Korea. Until now, scholars have been unable to reach a consensus on the production dates for the three major gilt-bronze Buddha statues of the Unified Silla Kingdom. But the social, political, and economic conditions of the ninth century, in addition to the state of Buddhist sculpture production during the first half of the ninth century, make a strong case for dating the three statues to the latter half of the ninth century.

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