Pakistan's "Fasting Buddha" Digitally Documented with Korean Technology

"It Will Be Applied to Immersive Content and More"

The statue of the Fasting Buddha, a representative Buddhist artifact of Pakistan, will be utilized in various ways through Korean technology.

The Cultural Heritage Administration and the Korea Heritage Service announced on June 23 that they have completed a 3D scan of the Fasting Buddha statue housed at the Lahore Museum in Pakistan. This statue depicts the Buddha's six years of extreme asceticism before attaining enlightenment under the bodhi tree in a hyper-realistic manner. The intricately rendered exposed ribs and other details have led experts to regard it as one of the most important works in the history of world Buddhism.

The Cultural Heritage Administration and the Korea Heritage Service conducted the digital documentation as part of their ongoing project since 2021 to foster Gandhara culture in Pakistan and support policies for tourism resource development. The data will be used for the permanent preservation of the artifact and as research material. An official from the Korea Heritage Service stated, "In the future, this will be applied to immersive content in the digital exhibition hall of the Islamabad Museum," adding, "It will play a significant role in conveying the beauty of Gandhara Buddhist art."