Flat Buddhas Quarry

Unjusa Temple
Hwasun County, Korea

Two colossal flat Buddhas, measuring 12.73m (41.8 ft) and 10.3m (33.8 ft) respectively, are partially cut out of the mountainside. They are carved in the typical Unjusa flat style, although much larger than any other Unjusa statues. The statues are positioned next to each other, but sharply separated by a carved fissure that runs the entire length of the rock between them.

The strong impression is that these statues were excavated here but were meant to be removed from the underlying rock, transported, and erected in the upright position elsewhere. Perhaps the scheme was finally abandoned as impractical, leaving the twin statues in the state where they are found today. This scenario is speculative, however, because definitive studies on these statues, as on most of Unjusa, have not yet been carried out.