조선 전반기 佛敎工藝의 도상해석학적 연구 - 명문과 도상적 특성 -

Abstract

During the early part of the Joseon period, Buddhist craft works were frequently commissioned by the royal house. They were often larger in size than those produced during the Goryeo Dynasty, in part because they were made to convey the new ruling dynasty’s prestige. Buddhist bells, accounting for the largest category of surviving Buddhist craft items, were, for example, produced through collaboration between top-notch specialists from each of the areas involved in the casting process. Early Joseon Buddhist bells went beyond the level in late Goryeo, consisting of simply copying Chinese bells, and laid the groundwork for the independent native tradition that was later forged. Although patronage for Buddhist crafts was limited, during this period, to the royal house, and works produced were not extremely varied, compared especially to the early Goryeo period, these works created by elite artisans are significant insofar as they breathed new life into this field, on a decline since the late Goryeo period. Starting from the mid-13th century, with the Mongol invasion and the subsequent Mongol rule, Buddhist crafts died out virtually completely. The lively casting activity in early Joseon, therefore, revived a moribund tradition on the brink of complete extinction. Contributions by early Joseon artisans can scarcely be exaggerated in terms of how instrumental they were in ensuring the renaissance of the Korean bell casting tradition in late Joseon.