It is a common feature that Korean artworks ‘hide’ their beauty from you on a superficial viewing. The Seokguram grotto, which appears on many brochures and could lay claim to being the most recognisable of Korea’s national treasures to outsiders, conforms to this rule.
You would rarely meet someone who had been bowled over or dazzled by the spectacle of the hermitage’s beauty. I visited the place several times, and only became fully acquainted when it was explained to me.
Built on the sacred mountain of Toham (토함산) in Gyeongju, Seokguram sits at the end of a winding path which leads up from Bulguksa, the main temple, and is enclosed within an artificial mound, shielded by a wooden gate.
Despite its unremarkable exterior appearance, it is lauded by a number of international scholars as a truly phenomenal achievement. It is remarkable among other things for blending religion, art and science within a single entity.
Technically, the grotto was a challenge because of Korea’s geology. Cave temples were not generally made with granite in other countries, because it is very difficult to sculpt with. However, 360 granite blocks were used in making the Seokguram structure. It was totally man-made, unlike other cave temples which were hollowed out in mountainsides.
Not only the building blocks, but the sculptures themselves were all made with granite. The aim of the sculptures was not to elicit amazement and surprise, but reverent silence. They are very restrained and minimalist in appearance, eschewing exaggeration and complexity.
The grotto was built according to a single design, rather than growing organically over time. The design reveals itself in the precision of its dimensions. The geometric proportions of the building symbolise the interdependence of life – not only in the relationship between the ante-room and the main hall, but also in the roof of the grotto.
The 108 stones which make up the roof are held together by their own weight, without the use of mortar, simply by means of equilibrium. Extraordinarily, we can detect a margin of error of only 1mm in every 10m, a ratio of 1:10,000. To put this in context, modern construction standards require an accuracy of 1:300.
The tools and mathematical knowledge that would have been needed to accomplish the former is truly astonishing, including amongst other things a knowledge of π to seven decimal places, and the precise value of the sine function of 9º.
Seokguram hides amongst the pagodas and bridges of Toham mountain, apparently unconcerned whether it receives visitors or not. It happens that it is one of Korea’s greatest attractions in terms of tourism, but the builders had a different audience in mind when they designed the structure.
