1. Avatamsaka Sutra (The Flower Garland Sutra), Jin Version, Volumes 51 to 57
This scripture is one (56) of the seven remaining volumes (51 to 57) of the 60-volume Jin edition of the Avatamsaka Sutra translated by Buddhabhadra (359-429) of Eastern Jin. Bound in the butterfly style and printed with small types, this volume is assumed to have been based on the Khitan edition and thus is extremely rare.
2. Avatamsaka Sutra (The Flower Garland Sutra), Zhenyuan Version, Volumes 1 to 10
This scripture is one (67) of the ten remaining volumes (1 to 10) of the 40-volume Zhenyuan edition of the Avatamsaka Sutra translated by Prajna. It was bound in the butterfly style and printed with small types on the basis of the Khitan edition. The name of the translator is placed after the title of the scripture printed before the main text.
3. Suvarna-prabhasottamaraja Sutra (The Golden Light Sutra), Volume 3
This volume of the Suvarna-prabhasottamaraja Sutra is the third of the four-volume sutra translated into Chinese by Dharmaksema. This sutra, along with the Karunikaraja Prajnaparamita Sutra, became one of the basic texts for the Golden Light Services held for the protection of nations. The title of the sutra and its volume number are printed on the opening page along with the name of its translator, Tripitaka Master Dharmaksema. The main text starts with the subtitle of the tenth chapter and continues to that of the fifteenth chapter. The book was made in a scroll format but without a spindle, suggesting that it was made for storage in the Buddha’s body. Experts believe that it was published by a Buddhist temple in the 12th century, and regard it as a precious artifact due to its rarity.
4. Prajnaparamita hridaya Sutra (The Heart Sutra)
This book containing the Prajnaparamita hridaya Sutra translated into Chinese by Dharma Master Xunjang (602–664) features a concertina binding of four pages, each of which is 19.7cm in length; has no ruled lines; and 16 characters in either six (1st page) to five lines (2nd to 4th page). It also has a title slip (10.5×3.3cm) containing its title written in ink and a postscript at the end of the main text which states that it was “printed in the 9th lunar month of the Jeonghae Year by a Buddhist follower and Gukjagam student named Sa Yu-jik who prayed for a long, healthy life for his father.” The year of publication, which experts believe is 1167, provides an important clue for dating other relics discovered along with this book.
5. Bhaisajyaguru Sutra (The Medicine Buddha Sutra)
This sutra, translated into Chinese by Dharma Master Xunjang (602–664), contains a scriptural illustration on the opening page and features a scroll binding (without spindle) consisting of fifteen sheets, each of which measures 26.6×49.5cm. While some of the front parts are missing, there is a mantra at the end of the title printed after the main text. Experts assume that the sutra was printed in the 12th or 13th century because, unlike the edition contained in the Original Edition of the Tripitaka Koreana, it has no “index marks”. Published by a temple and containing an illustration depicting the content of the sutra, it is regarded as a rare and valuable edition.
6. Bhaisajyaguru Sutra (The Medicine Buddha Sutra), the First Tripitaka Koreana Edition, Volume 2
This edition of the Bhaisajyaguru Sutra translated by Dharma Master Xunjang (602–664) features a scroll format although it has neither a bamboo edge nor a spindle, probably because it was made to be stored in the repository in the Buddha’s body. Each sheet is 26.9×46.8cm without ruled lines; there are 23 lines with 14 characters per line on the first page, and 24 lines on the other pages. The book also contains a name which may be that of the individual who commissioned the publication. The quality of printing and the paper is uneven.
While a comparatively large number of rolls (52) were discovered, they are regarded as valuable because no part of this edition had been discovered until then. Unfortunately, many of the scrolls are missing texts and pages, and only undamaged ones have been designated as Treasures.
7. Sutra Transcribed in Ink on White Paper
While some of the front part is missing, this book made in a scroll format consists of nine sheets measuring 14×42.9㎝ (first sheet) and 14×281.5㎝ (second to ninth sheets). There are no boundary lines, and the number of characters contained on each is uneven.
8. Dharma of Manjusri for Supreme Vehicle and Non-being Vinaya in Gold on Indigo Paper
This book of ordination written in gold on indigo paper was made in 1326 by Jigong, an Indian monk who arrived in Goryeo via China, for his pupil Gakgyeong. The content is based on the Sutra of Manjusri for the Supreme Vehicle and Non-being Vinaya which he had translated himself. It features concertina binding and a front cover decorated with a floral medallion motif, and measures 8.2×6.3㎝.