Early Joseon painting auctioned in Seoul

The “Sakyamuni Platform Painting,” thought to have been painted in 1592 by an unnamed artist, was auctioned for 830 million won ($721,400) at Seoul Auction in central Seoul, Wednesday. / Yonhap

By Baek Byung-yeul

A rare Buddhist art work, taken from the peninsula during the Japanese invasion of Korea in the late 16th Century, was auctioned this week.

The “Sakyamuni Platform Painting,” thought to have been painted in 1592 by an unnamed artist, was purchased Wednesday for 830 million won ($721,400) at Seoul Auction in central Seoul.

The purchase of the artwork “has great meaning because this is the first time it has appeared in public since it was made, right before the war occurred in 1592, and taken to Japan,” a representative from the auction house said in a statement.

“Before it went public today, there had been only one painting left that was produced in the early period of the Joseon Kingdom (1392-1910) portraying a meeting of Sakyamuni and his disciples in Korea.”

Also Wednesday, “Immortals,” a ten-panel screen painting that King Gojong of the Joseon Kingdom bestowed on Carl Wolter of Germany was purchased by a domestic bidder for 660 million won ($570,000). The German was the owner of Korea’s first modernized trading company, Sechang Yanghaeng.

The painting, which is assumed to have been painted in the late 19th Century, features depictions of Taoists.

According to the auction house, Wolter’s great granddaughter, Mitchell Jagerhuber requested that the painting be sold by the auction house. The German made the request in his will because the painting is “one of the important cultural heritages of Korea,” it said.