NHA - Korean Traditional Stone Pagoda

Changnimsa three-story stone pagoda at the Changnimsa Temple site in Gyeongju has the characteristic appearance of a three-story Silla pagoda supported by a double-tier base, which was hewn from a single block of stone and carved to have columns and panels between them.

Cheongun twin pagodas, restored in 1939, stand on a wide plain to the east and west of Cheongun-dong, Gyeongju. Each pagoda consists of a two-layer stylobate and a three-story main body of a similar size and style.

Ma-dong three-story pagoda stands on a field northwest from Bulguksa Temple and consists of two-story platform and three-story body. The lower and upper platforms are made up of four and eight stone plates, respectively, with pillars carved on the corners and at the middle of both platforms.

The Namsan-dong western pagoda has the images of the Eight Guardian Deities carved on the four sides of its double-tier stylobate. These Eight Guardian Deities are not a simple decoration for the pagodas that appear on those made after the mid-Silla Period but are an expression of the belief that the pagoda is the world of Buddha, Mount Sumeru. Like its pair in the east, each of the core stones and roof stones for each story is carved out of a single rock, and each roof has five-tier cornices and pole patterns carved on all four corners.

The Wonwonsa twin pagoda’s sculptural styles, which are characteristic of stone pagodas of the Unified Silla Period, the cutting and trimming techniques of the roof stones, the artistic styles of the stylobate and the body, and the technique of piecing the stone blocks together all suggest that these pagodas were erected around the mid-8th century. These pagodas were the first to feature carved figures of the twelve animal deities of the Chinese zodiac on the stylobate.

The Yongjanggye Jigok padgoda is located at a temple site in Yongjanggye Jigok on Namsan Mountain, Gyeongju, There is no record of when the pagoda was originally built, but the discovery of roof-tile fragments with inscriptions, including the Chinese character “”Yong”” (茸), suggests a connection with Yongjangsa Temple. The Yongjangsa Temple site also contains a three-story stone pagoda, a rock-cut Buddha in sitting position, and a stone statue of seated Buddha.

Yongjansagok pagoda was built during the Unified Silla Dynasty on a high ridge of the mountain chain that stretches eastwards and surrounds Yongjangsa Temple. A number of stone structures remaining in this area have led historians to assume that this was formerly the site of a temple.

Namsa-ri pagoda stands on the remains of a Buddhist temple whose name is unknown. It consists of a two-story platform and a three-story main body. Although repaired in 1975, the rest of the pagoda except the upper platform and the middle stone in the north direction has maintained its original appearance.