Kamakura Great Buddha Hall – Kōtoku-in Temple
Kōtoku-in is a Buddhist temple of the Jōdo sect located in the Hase area of Kamakura City, Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan. The temple enshrines Amida Buddha as its principal deity. This statue is widely known as the “Great Buddha of Kamakura” and is situated on Mount Daibutsu. The identities of the temple's founder (kaiki) and its first head priest (kaisan) can no longer be verified.
Standing at 11.3 meters tall and weighing approximately 121 tons, this statue is the second-largest bronze Buddha in Japan. It is also the only Buddha statue in the Kamakura area designated as a National Treasure. The statue earned the nickname “handsome man” because of its graceful features, which were praised in poetry by the famous Japanese poet Akiko Yosano.
According to records left by the temple, the construction of the statue dates back to the Kamakura period in 1252. However, it is still uncertain whether the statue mentioned in those records is the same as the one we see today. Originally, the Great Buddha was housed inside a large wooden hall, but the building was destroyed by a tsunami during the late 15th-century Muromachi period. Only the statue has survived to the present day.
