page_title: Hōryū-ji
section_title: Murals
hierarchical_section_title: Hōryū-ji / Treasures / Murals
caption_attribution_description: English: Upper half part of Amidhaba Paradise, wall painting of Golden hall of Horyuji, Colour on fresco Secco, late 7th century, 266cm wide, Photo before the fire which severely damaged most wall paintings in 1949日本語: 法隆寺金堂壁画　阿弥陀浄土図　上部　　壁面（土漆喰など）に顔料で描かれた壁画　七世紀末（推定）　1949年の火災前の状態
context_page_description: Hōryū-ji is a Buddhist temple that was once one of the powerful Seven Great Temples, in Ikaruga, Nara Prefecture, Japan. Its full name is Hōryū Gakumonji, or Learning Temple of the Flourishing Law, the complex serving as both a seminary and monastery.
  The temple was founded by Prince Shōtoku in 607, but according to the Nihon Shoki, in 670 all buildings were burned down by lightning. However, reconstructed at least 1,300 years ago, the Kondō is widely recognized as the world's oldest wooden building.
  A fire that broke out during the dismantling and repair of Kondo on January 26, 1949 destroyed a mural of the Asuka period, a national treasure, and shocked the Japanese. Based on this accident, the day when the fire broke out is now fire prevention day for cultural properties.
  In 1993, Horyu-ji Temple, along with Hokki-ji, was registered as Japan's first UNESCO World Heritage site under the name of Buddhist Monuments in the Hōryū-ji Area.
  A tree ring survey conducted in 2001 revealed that the shinbashira of the five-story pagoda were cut down in 594, before burned down in 670.
context_section_description: The murals of the kondō comprise fifty walls; four larger walls, eight mid-sized walls and thirty-eight small wall areas inside the building. The original murals were removed after the fire incident in 1949 and are kept in a non-public treasure house. Twenty small wall paintings, unscathed from the 1949 fire, are in their original places while reproductions replaced the parts that were removed due to damage.
  It is generally believed that the paintings on the large walls represent the Pure Land (浄土 jōdo) with Shaka, Amida, Miroku and Yakushi Nyorai Buddhas. Some of the artistic choices, including the way the robes are modeled, are similar to murals found in Ajanta Caves (India) or Dunhuang (China.) Also observed are Tang and Indian flavors of the Bosatsu and Kannon drawn on the sides of the Amida.
  Judging from the early Tang influences, the present day consensus on the time of creation of the paintings is end of 7th century. Thus ruling out the possibilities of authorship by those early 7th century figures who were once believed to be the creator, e.g. Tori or Donchō, there is no clear or accepted author of this work.
caption: Amidhaba paradise before fire
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