Tian Tan Buddha

The statue

A bronze Buddha, 34 m tall, sits on a lotus above a three-platform altar

The Tian Tan Big Buddha is a large bronze sculpture of Gautama Buddha, completed in 1993 near Po Lin Monastery on Lantau Island. The 34 m tall image weighs over 250 metric tons and was constructed from 202 bronze pieces.

34 mthe height of the bronze image

Six Devas

Six smaller bronze figures offer gifts to the Buddha

Six smaller bronze images known as The Offering of the Six Devas surround the Buddha. They offer flowers, incense, lamp, ointment, fruit, and music, representing the Six Perfections of generosity, morality, patience, zeal, meditation, and wisdom.

The plan

Plans began in 1973 after monks visited Buddhas in Japan and Taiwan

Plans for a Buddha statue began in 1973, after monks from Po Lin Monastery visited the Great Buddha of Kamakura in Japan and the Great Buddha of Changhua in Taiwan. The following year the British government granted a plot of land next to the temple.

Finished

The image was finished on 29 December 1993, a date reckoned as enlightenment

Construction began in 1990 and was finished on 29 December 1993, which the Chinese reckon as the day of the Buddha's enlightenment. Monks from around the world were invited to the opening ceremony.

Inside

Three exhibit floors under the image hold a relic of the Buddha

Three internal exhibit floors lie beneath the image: the halls of the Universe, of Benevolent Merit and of Remembrance. One of the most renowned features inside is a relic of Gautama Buddha, consisting of some of his alleged cremated remains.