- no :
-
Shaka Triad Statue//
- R :
-
Could you say a little more about that?//
- M :
-
Sure.//
Let’s talk about the Shaka Triad statue in Horyuji.//
It’s very old.//
The metal is deteriorating/and some parts are missing.//
We could make a reproduction of it/as it looks today.//
However,/we wanted to restore the statue/to exactly the same condition it was in/when it was created in 623.//
You might say/we wanted to retain the original “genes.”//
- R :
-
So if we compare the actual statue in Horyuji/with its clone,/we’ll notice some differences,/right?//
- M :
-
That’s right.//
For one thing,/look at the central figure.//
It has curls of hair on its head.//
Some of these were missing in the original,/but they have been restored in the clone.//
We also restored the flying heavenly maidens/around the halo behind the figures.//
- R :
-
Very impressive!//
But how could you reproduce something you’ve never seen?//
- M :
-
That’s the tricky part.//
First of all,/we learned everything we could/about Buddhist statues.//
Then we supplemented that knowledge/with 3-D measurements of the statues.//
We also consulted academic references and records/in order to reproduce colors faithfully.//
The bronze we used/was as close to the original as possible.//
- R :
-
That must have taken a lot of time.//
And people.//
- M :
-
Lots and lots of people.//
Art history professors,/material analysis experts,/painters,/sculptors,/and traditional craftsmen.//
Specialists in Takaoka copperware and Inami wood carving/helped us make the castings.//
Without the partnership of cutting-edge technology/and traditional craftsmanship,/we couldn’t have completed our project.//