Photography Budda Statue at the Yonghe Temple
Photography Budda Statue at the Yonghe Temple
CC BY-SA 4.0
A black-and-white photograph showing a clay Buddha statue at the Yonghe Gong 雍和宫 or “Temple of Tranquility and Harmony”, temple complex in Beijing. During the Qing Dynasty (1644–1912), this temple was the seat of Tibetan dignitaries and housed nearly a thousand monks. Next to the pedestal are four smaller clay figures of the Four Heavenly Kings, the protectors of the Dharma.
Tibetan statues are usually made of metal or coloured clay. Unfired clay placed around a wooden frame or armature is common throughout Buddhist Asia. The material is only two-thirds clay, the rest being made of other materials, mainly paper. This makes the mixture easier to shape and transport. Details such as the jewellery on the statue are made separately by casting them into models and then attaching them to the statue. The location of the statue in the temple is unknown.
The photograph is the 200th of 449 photographs of Beijing and its surroundings in the album of Ivan Skušek ... more
A black-and-white photograph showing a clay Buddha statue at the Yonghe Gong 雍和宫 or “Temple of Tranquility and Harmony”, temple complex in Beijing. During the Qing Dynasty (1644–1912), this temple was the seat of Tibetan dignitaries and housed nearly a thousand monks. Next to the pedestal are four smaller clay figures of the Four Heavenly Kings, the protectors of the Dharma.
Tibetan statues are usually made of metal or coloured clay. Unfired clay placed around a wooden frame or armature is common throughout Buddhist Asia. The material is only two-thirds clay, the rest being made of other materials, mainly paper. This makes the mixture easier to shape and transport. Details such as the jewellery on the statue are made separately by casting them into models and then attaching them to the statue. The location of the statue in the temple is unknown.
The photograph is the 200th of 449 photographs of Beijing and its surroundings in the album of Ivan Skušek Jr., purchased during his stay in Beijing (1914–1920). In the handwritten inventory of the album, the photograph is referred to as Lama-Kloster: Götze (Ton). (DZ, MV)
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