Baekje smile
Encyclopedia
The Baekje smile is a term art historians use to refer to the common smile motif found in Baekje
Baekje
Baekje or Paekche was a kingdom located in southwest Korea. It was one of the Three Kingdoms of Korea, together with Goguryeo and Silla....

 sculpture and bas-relief. Baekje figures express a unique smile that has been described as both enigmatic and subtle. The smile has been also been characterized in many different ways from "genuinely glowing" to "thin and mild" to "unfathomable and benevolent".

Of all the Three Kingdoms
Three Kingdoms of Korea
The Three Kingdoms of Korea refer to the ancient Korean kingdoms of Goguryeo, Baekje and Silla, which dominated the Korean peninsula and parts of Manchuria for much of the 1st millennium...

, Baekje art was stylistically the most realistic and technically sophisticated . While Goguryeo
Goguryeo
Goguryeo or Koguryŏ was an ancient Korean kingdom located in present day northern and central parts of the Korean Peninsula, southern Manchuria, and southern Russian Maritime province....

 sculpture was highly rigid and Silla
Silla
Silla was one of the Three Kingdoms of Korea, and one of the longest sustained dynasties in...

 sculpture was formalized, Baekje sculpture exhibited distinct characteristics of warmth, softness, and used relaxed poses. http://www.britannica.com/ebi/article-9057960. Sometimes, the Baekje style has been attributed to influence from the southern Chinese dynasties. http://www.britannica.com/ebi/article-9057960. However, the most remarkable feature of Baekje sculpture is the distinctive Baekje smile. http://www.britannica.com/ebi/article-9057960. The smile gives the Baekje statues a sense of friendliness and an air of pleasantness that is rarely found in other traditions of Buddhist sculpture. The smile is considered to be unique and distinctive. http://www.buddhamuseum.com/korean-buddha.html.

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