Qingzhou Buddhist Statues: The Eternal Smile of the East.

On the east side of the fourth floor of the national first-class museum, Qingzhou Museum, there is a dedicated exhibition hall called the "Qingzhou Longxing Temple Ruins Unearthed Buddhist Statue Art Display."
The treasures in the exhibition hall are Buddhist statues unearthed from the kiln at the Longxing Temple ruins in 1996. Although most of these statues show signs of wear and some are even damaged, they still present the kind and auspicious smile of the East with their strong and elegant postures, in a unique style known as "Graceful Bones and Clear Images."
Among them, the most brilliant, complete, perfect, and representative is the standing gilded and painted Buddhist statue from the Northern Qi dynasty, located at the entrance of the exhibition hall, praised as the "Eternal Smile."
Look: This "Eternal Smile" quietly stands within a halo like a bright moon. Her eyes are gently closed, eyebrows like a new moon, nose straight, and the curve of her lips perfectly balanced—not overly joyful nor indifferent. The smile at the corner of her lips seems to awaken from time, carrying the warmth of a thousand years, gazing at the cycle of life and death in the world. The statue’s right hand is in the fearless mudra, calm and powerful, with the palm lines showing more wear from the erosion of time. On the mottled kasaya, the checkered pattern of vermilion red and earthy yellow is still clearly visible. The moment I met her gaze, I was deeply moved: this smile, a thousand years in an instant, forever blooms with a compassionate light in the river of time!

Address: No. 7688, Yangtianshan, Qingzhou City, Weifang, Shandong Province
Free admission, reservation required. Tuesday to Sunday, 9:00 AM - 5:00 PM

Post by WyattDavis | Oct 23, 2025