국립중앙박물관 소장 청자 투각칠보문뚜껑 향로를 받치는 토끼 조형의 맥락과 함의

Abstract

This study discusses the symbolism of the rabbit statue on the base of a celadon incense burner with an openwork auspicious-character design lid in the National Museum of Korea. Chapter II analyzes the overall design of the incense burner, pointing out that although the rabbit statue is small in size, it is a three-dimensional figure with detailed carving of each part of the body and inlaid techniques used to express the eyes, making it an important component that embodies artistry beyond a simple base. Chapter III explores the spectrum of perceptions of the rabbit by examining rabbit sculptures from before the Goryeo period. As a symbol of fertility and longevity, thought to be a guide to the quick passage of the souls of the dead to the afterlife, rabbits were attached to funerary urns in the Silla period. They were depicted as moon symbols in Goguryeo tomb paintings and Unified Silla roof-end tiles. In Unified Silla, rabbits were also carved into royal tombs as members of the Twelve Great Deities to show the despotic kingship of the kings guarding the tomb, or were majestically displayed in stupas to represent the authority of Bhaisajyaguru. In Chapter IV, the meaning of the three rabbits supporting the incense burner was derived from three aspects. First, the intention of the rabbit's representation on the incense was inferred from the similarities between the rabbit's self-sacrifice and the offering of incense in The Jataka Tales of the Rabbit's Original Life (Sasa Jataka), which is to burn oneself and offer it to the gods. Since the rabbit was Buddha in the previous life, the life in which he practiced the great act of selflessness, it is believed that the rabbit was chosen to stand alone on the base of the incense burner, even though it does not symbolize absolute physical power. Through this carving of the rabbit, it can be seen that the 12th-century Goryeo people understood the offering of incense and the act of self-sacrifice in the same context. Second, the appearance of rabbits in historical texts and geographical journals from the Three Kingdoms and Goryeo periods was examined. In doing so, the chapter describes who recognized rabbits as auspicious animals in addition to being a symbol in Buddhism. Third, it discusses the internationalization of Goryeo culture, which is reflected in the sculpture of the atlas that supports the top. It is interpreted that the incense burner represents the cosmopolitanism of Goryeo culture because the rabbit statue on the incense burner was arranged in a form similar to the atlas statues popular in ancient Greece, Persia, and India and spread along the Silk Road.