A note on sasanian-buddhist object of Gyeongju National Museum

Abstract

A note on sasanian-buddhist object of Gyeongju National Museum Although Korean and late Sasanian texts are silent about mutual relations, archaeological evidences provide a different perspective. This paper deals with an object known at Gyeongju National Museum of the Republic of Korea. The loop was discovered in Bunhwangsa Buddhist Temple in Geun-jik (Gyeongju) region in 2001. Gyeongju’s loop includes a round form made of clay, with a pearly chain (running) in the border and two birds (ducks most probably) appearing in the center of the motif while they are trying to hold a stalk of a herb. Many scholarly works have been published about it and interpreted it as the ‘tree of life.’The author believes that this herb (as distinct from a plant) is a sacred lotus. In fact, the birds try to hold it in their beaks. So, an expert creator of the object used known Sasanian artistic elements on the one hand and combined them with a famous Buddhist element on the other hand. It ispossible the creator attempted to immortalize his work with this sacred lotus: in a Buddhist temple, only such an element was allowed to be introduced.

Keywords

• Silla
• Sasanian
• Gyeongju National Museum
• loop
• lotus
• tree of life