Jeongnimsa Temple

SOUTH KOREA, South Chungcheong, Buyeo

The temple is thought to have been built during the final years of the Baekje dynasty (18 BCE–663 CE), soon after Baekje moved its capital to Sabi, present-day Buyeo. With the fall of the Baekje dynasty, the temple is said to have burnt for seven days and seven nights. In 1942 Japanese archaeologists found roof tiles dating to 1028 during the Goryeo dynasty. They were inscribed with the characters for Jeongimsa, thus suggesting that the temple may have been reconstructed during the Goryeo dynasty (918–1392). It was listed as Historic Site No. 301 in 1983.
According to archaeological findings, the temple faced south and, from north to south, consisted of the central gate, five-tier stone pagoda, Golden Hall, and a lecture hall. The layout of a main hall and a pagoda in the middle of a courtyard surrounded by a covered walkway is known as the one-hall-one-pagoda arrangement in Korean architecture. The Baekje took this arrangement to Japan and the Shitennoji (Four Heavenly Kings Temple) in Osaka was influenced by this design.
The only extant structure is the five-tier stone pagoda, together with a statue of a seated Buddha on the grounds of the original lecture hall. The stone seated Buddha is believed to have been sculpted during the Goryeo dynasty and has undergone several restorations. It was listed as Treasure No. 108 in 1963.