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The Great Buddha of Kamakura (Daibutsu in Japanese) in Japan is a representation of Buddha Amitaba the Lord of the Western Pure Land. The bronze statue of Amita Buddha, which is worshipped by the followers of the Pure Land sect of Buddhism as a savior, was cast in 1252 and is Kamakura's most important tourist site. Once housed in a huge hall, the statue today sits in the open, the original temple having been washed away by a tsunami in 1495. Cast in bronze and weighing close to 850 tonnes, the statue is 13.35 meter tall. The latest repairs to the Buddha were completed in 1960. These strengthened the neck and made it possible for the Buddha's body to move freely on the base to prevent a damaging shock to the statue in case of an earthquake.
The Daibutsu sits there in the open air, his head looming above the pine trees, and his face turned toward the peaceful waters of the ocean typical of the dreamland Nirvana. The statue is a patchwork of pieces of bronze, the surface being finished up with the file. There are distinctive characteristics in each part of the body of the statue:
The eye is horizontal
The eyebrow is semi-circular
There is a white curl on the forehead that emits rays of light revealing all worlds in the universe. It is made of pure silver weighing 13.5 kgs.
The mouth has a Ionian smile
The ridge of the nose starts from the forehead which retains something of Greek-Art
The hair is made of a number of curls winding clockwise. There are about 656 curls altogether.
The legs are crossed and inclined slightly forward
The pose expresses the usual way of meditating on the part of Indians, and it is still adopted for meditation by Japanese Buddhists, especially by the followers of Zen. The direction of the eyes is at right angles facing the ground and gives the visitor a feeling of intimacy when approaching it.
Other landmarks: Christ the Redeemer, Colossus, Delhi pillar, Eiffel tower, Golden Gate bridge, Great Buddha, Guggenheim Museum (Bilbao), Guggenheim Museum (NYC), Normandy bridge, Oresund crossing, Quebec Bridge, Statue of Liberty, Thames Barrier, Titanic, Tower of the Orologio, Washington Monument
