The Yungang Grottoes (), formerly the Wuzhoushan Grottoes (), are ancient Chinese
Buddhist
Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and ...
temple grottoes near the city of
Datong
Datong is a prefecture-level city in northern Shanxi Province in the People's Republic of China. It is located in the Datong Basin at an elevation of and borders Inner Mongolia to the north and west and Hebei to the east. As of the 2020 cens ...
in the province of
Shanxi
Shanxi (; ; formerly romanised as Shansi) is a landlocked province of the People's Republic of China and is part of the North China region. The capital and largest city of the province is Taiyuan, while its next most populated prefecture-lev ...
. They are excellent examples of
rock-cut architecture
Rock-cut architecture is the creation of structures, buildings, and sculptures by excavating solid rock where it naturally occurs. Intensely laborious when using ancient tools and methods, rock-cut architecture was presumably combined with quarryi ...
and one of the three most famous ancient Buddhist sculptural sites of China. The others are
Longmen Longmen () may refer to:
*Longmen (mythology), The Dragon Gate in Chinese mythology, located at the top of a waterfall cascading from a legendary mountain
*Longmen Grottoes, collection of Buddhist cave art in Luoyang
*Longmen Mountains, mountain ra ...
and
Mogao.
The site is located about 16 km west of the city of
Datong
Datong is a prefecture-level city in northern Shanxi Province in the People's Republic of China. It is located in the Datong Basin at an elevation of and borders Inner Mongolia to the north and west and Hebei to the east. As of the 2020 cens ...
, in the valley of the Shi Li river at the base of the Wuzhou Shan mountains. They are an outstanding example of the Chinese stone carvings from the 5th and 6th centuries. There are 53 major caves, along with 51,000 niches housing the same number of Buddha statues. Additionally, there are around 1,100 minor caves. A Ming dynasty-era fort is still located on top of the cliff housing the Yungang Grottoes.
The grottoes were excavated in the south face of a sandstone cliff about 2600 feet long and 30 to 60 feet high. In 2001, the Yungang Grottoes were made a
UNESCO
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world peace and security through international cooperation in education, arts, sciences and culture. It ...
World Heritage Site
A World Heritage Site is a landmark or area with legal protection by an international convention administered by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). World Heritage Sites are designated by UNESCO for h ...
. The Yungang Grottoes are considered by UNESCO to be a "masterpiece of early Chinese Buddhist cave art...
nd...represent the successful fusion of Buddhist religious symbolic art from south and central Asia with Chinese cultural traditions, starting in the 5th century CE under Imperial auspices." It is classified as a
AAAAA scenic area
AAAAA (5A) is awarded to the most important and best-maintained tourist attractions in the People's Republic of China, given the highest level in the rating categories used by the Ministry of Culture and Tourism. As of 2020, there are 279 touris ...
by the
China National Tourism Administration
The China National Tourism Administration (CNTA; ) was a Chinese government authority responsible for the development of tourism in the country. The CNTA was subordinate to the State Council. Its headquarters are in Beijing, with regional branche ...
.
History
![China_-_Yungang_Grottoes_9_(135943264)](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d9/China_-_Yungang_Grottoes_9_%28135943264%29.jpg)
After the
decline of the West Jin dynasty, the northern parts of China came under the control of the
Tuoba
The Tuoba (reconstructed Middle Chinese pronunciation: *''tʰak-bɛt''), also known as the Taugast or Tabgach ( otk, 𐱃𐰉𐰍𐰲 ''Tabγač''), was a Xianbei clan in Imperial China.Wei Shou. '' Book of Wei''. Vol. 1
During the Sixteen King ...
-ruled
Northern Wei
Wei (), known in historiography as the Northern Wei (), Tuoba Wei (), Yuan Wei () and Later Wei (), was founded by the Tuoba (Tabgach) clan of the Xianbei. The first of the Northern and Southern dynasties#Northern dynasties, Northern dynasties ...
. They made the city of Pingcheng (平城), now known as Datong (大同), their capital. Due to its promotion, Pingcheng saw an increase in construction work. The Northern Wei early adopted Buddhism as their state religion. Buddhism arrived in this location via travel on the ancient
North Silk Road
The Northern Silk Road is an ancient trackway in northern China originating in the early capital of Xi'an and extending north of the Taklamakan Desert to reach the ancient kingdoms of Parthia, Bactria and eventually Persia and Rome. It is the no ...
, the northernmost route of about 2600 kilometres in length, which connected the ancient Chinese capital of Xi'an to the west over the Wushao Ling Pass to
Wuwei and emerging in
Kashgar
Kashgar ( ug, قەشقەر, Qeshqer) or Kashi ( zh, c=喀什) is an oasis city in the Tarim Basin region of Southern Xinjiang. It is one of the westernmost cities of China, near the border with Afghanistan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Pakistan ...
before linking to ancient
Parthia
Parthia ( peo, 𐎱𐎼𐎰𐎺 ''Parθava''; xpr, 𐭐𐭓𐭕𐭅 ''Parθaw''; pal, 𐭯𐭫𐭮𐭥𐭡𐭥 ''Pahlaw'') is a historical region located in northeastern Greater Iran. It was conquered and subjugated by the empire of the Med ...
.
The work on this first period of carving lasted until the year 465 AD, and these caves are now known as caves 16–20. Beginning around the year 471 AD, in a second construction phase that lasted until 494 AD, the twin caves 5/6, 7/8, and 9/10 as well as the caves 11, 12, and probably 13 were constructed under the supervision and support of the imperial court. The imperial patronage ended 494 AD with the move of the Wei court to the new capital of
Luoyang
Luoyang is a city located in the confluence area of Luo River (Henan), Luo River and Yellow River in the west of Henan province. Governed as a prefecture-level city, it borders the provincial capital of Zhengzhou to the east, Pingdingshan to the ...
. All other caves emerged under private patronage in a third construction period, lasting until 525, when the construction came to a final halt due to uprisings in the area.
Deterioration and Conservation
Since the end of the works, the sandstone of the grottoes has been exposed to heavy weathering. Many of the grottoes are exposed to the open air, and are therefore vulnerable to various forms of pollution and deterioration. Windblown dust and air pollution from the industrial city of Datong, as well as dust from mines and highways near the site pose a threat to the preservation of the ancient statues. The site is also in proximity of the Gobi Desert, the storms of which can contribute to the decay of the statues. The ensuing centuries therefore saw several attempts to preserve the caves and to repair sustained damage. During the
Liao dynasty
The Liao dynasty (; Khitan: ''Mos Jælud''; ), also known as the Khitan Empire (Khitan: ''Mos diau-d kitai huldʒi gur''), officially the Great Liao (), was an imperial dynasty of China that existed between 916 and 1125, ruled by the Yelü ...
the caves saw some renewing of statues and, from 1049 to 1060, the buildup of the "10 temples of Yungang", which were meant to protect the main caves. However, they were destroyed again some 60 years later in a fire. The wooden buildings extant in front of caves 5 and 6 were constructed in 1621, during the early
Qing dynasty
The Qing dynasty ( ), officially the Great Qing,, was a Manchu-led imperial dynasty of China and the last orthodox dynasty in Chinese history. It emerged from the Later Jin dynasty founded by the Jianzhou Jurchens, a Tungusic-speak ...
. Since the 1950s, cracks in the sandstone have been sealed by grouting, and forestation has been implemented in an effort to reduce the weathering due to sandstorms. During the
Cultural Revolution
The Cultural Revolution, formally known as the Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution, was a sociopolitical movement in the People's Republic of China (PRC) launched by Mao Zedong in 1966, and lasting until his death in 1976. Its stated goal ...
,
Red Guards
Red Guards () were a mass student-led paramilitary social movement mobilized and guided by Chairman Mao Zedong in 1966 through 1967, during the first phase of the Cultural Revolution, which he had instituted.Teiwes According to a Red Guard lead ...
damaged many of the carvings, and bullet marks are still visible to observers. During April and May 1991,
Caltech
The California Institute of Technology (branded as Caltech or CIT)The university itself only spells its short form as "Caltech"; the institution considers other spellings such a"Cal Tech" and "CalTech" incorrect. The institute is also occasional ...
personnel conducted air pollutant measurement experiments in the Yungang Grottoes. It was found that nearly all of the airborne matter was mineral dust or carbon particles, allowing a focus of attention on sources of these kinds of matter.
Cave 6
Cave 6 is one of the richest of the Yungang sites. It was constructed between 465 and 494 C.E. by Emperor Xiao Wen. The cave's surface area is approximately 1,000 square meters. The entire interior of the cave is carved and painted. There is a stupa pillar in the center of the room extending from the floor to the ceiling. The walls are divided into two stories. The walls of the upper stories are host to carvings of standing Buddhas, Bodhisattvas, and monks among other celestial figures. All of the carvings were painted, but because the caves have been repainted evidently up to twelve times, determining the original scheme is difficult.
Gallery
File:Yungang 12.JPG, Top of the column (dougong
''Dougong'' () is a structural element of interlocking wooden brackets, one of the most important in traditional Chinese architecture.
The use of dougong first appeared in buildings of the late centuries BC and evolved into a structural net ...
) in the building protecting the caves of Yungang Grottoes
File:China Yungang Grottoes IMG 3534.jpg, Yungang Grottoe Buddha
File:Buddhist paintings Yungang.jpg, Buddhist paintings in the Yungang Grottoes
File:Yungang cave9 dougong.jpg, Stone carved dougong inside Cave 9
File:Datong 14 grotta.jpg, One of the larger statues at Yungang
File:Side wall statues Yungang.jpg
File:Buddhas in collapsed cave Yungang.jpg
File:Statue at the Yungang Grottoes.jpg, Statue at the Yungang Grottoes
File:Yungang painting 2010.JPG
File:云岗11.JPG
File:Datong 145.jpg, Cave 12. Phase II, after 650 AD. Yungang Grottoes, Datong: a riot of decoration is illustrated here, with Buddhas, musicians, and apsarasas.
File:Datong 146.jpg, Cave 12. Phase II, after 465 AD. Yungang Grottoes, Datong: musicians playing the pipa
The pipa, pípá, or p'i-p'a () is a traditional Chinese musical instrument, belonging to the plucked category of instruments. Sometimes called the "Chinese lute", the instrument has a pear-shaped wooden body with a varying number of frets rang ...
and sheng overlook the passing scene.
File:Yungang11 2010.JPG, Cave 20
References
Further reading
*
*
* "The Oldest Buddhist Stone Monuments known to China - fifth-century sculptures at Wu Chou Shan", well-illustrated feature in ''The Illustrated London News'', 10 October 1931.
External links
Official website
UNESCO World Heritage page about Yungang Grottoes
{{Authority control
Major National Historical and Cultural Sites in Shanxi
Chinese Buddhist grottoes
Buddhist temples in Shanxi
Buddhist pilgrimage sites in China
Sites along the Silk Road
World Heritage Sites in China
AAAAA-rated tourist attractions
Northern Wei
Datong