In Korea, many Buddhist Images have been found inside pagodas built between the Three Kingdoms eriod and the Joseon Period. As many as 100 Buddha Images have been found in about 40 pagodas. Buddha mages enshrined in pagodas over a long period of time, although often for different purposes. Thirty of these Buddha Images were found in pagodas built in the fifteenth century. These Buddha Images are in elaborate form, and in most cases, the years of their production are known. Above all, they have great value in art history because their locations are clearly known. Several documents, including scriptures written during the heyday of Seon(Zen) Buddhism, and texts used in rites, explain why so many Buddha images were enshrined in pagodas in fifteenth century Joseon. For example, Geumganggyeong ogahae (Five Commentaries on the Diamond Sutra) and Seonmun yeomsong seolhwa (Commentary on the Seonmun yeomsong) state that the character myo in the Korean word tammyo pagoda does not mean “tomb,” as it is generally understood, but “shape,” or, to be more specific, the shape of the Buddha. That is why a Buddha Image was enshrined in a pagoda. Afterward, Buddhist rites contributed to spreading the custom of enshrining a Buddha Image in a pagoda, thus encouraging everyone to respect the custom. Although it is not known exactly when this custom first came to be observed, it seems plausible that the scriptural accounts generated the practice. It is true that pagodas did contain ordinary reliquaries in this period, but this tended to be replaced by a Buddha Images. Most of the Buddha Images found in the thirty pagodas dating from fifteenth-century Joseon were enshrined to represent wishes for longevity and eternal life, based on the ideas of Pure Land Buddhism. Buddhist monastics and lay people from all walks of life participated in the enshrining of these Buddha Images. The Buddha Images enshrined in fifteenth-century Joseon pagodas are made of gilt- bronze in small size; though small, they were installed with a sacred relics inside their bodies according to the current custom, and went through the eye-opening ceremony. The ritual of putting relics inside a Buddha Image was commonly practiced in fifteenth-century Joseon; in fact, placing relics inside a Buddha Image signifies religious completeness. In this regard, a Buddha Image enshrined in a pagoda would have been meaningful in itself rather than as a means of placing relics. The custom of putting relics into a Buddha Image in a pagoda first appeared during the early Joseon period. This reflects an important characteristic of this period, which is linked to the offerings were made to a statue of the Buddha located in the hall of monastery, rather than to a pagoda. In other words, statues enshrined in pagodas in fifteenth-century Joseon have different meanings from those of previous periods.