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Coordinates: 400214N 944815E

Mogao Caves
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The Mogao Caves or Mogao

Grottoes (Chinese: ; pinyin:
Mgo k), also known as the Caves
of the Thousand Buddhas
(Chinese: ; pinyin: qin f
dng), form a system of 492 temples
25 km (16 mi) southeast of the center
of Dunhuang, an oasis strategically
located at a religious and cultural
crossroads on the Silk Road, in
Gansu province, China. The caves
may also be known as the
Dunhuang Caves, however, this
term is also used to include other
Buddhist cave sites in the Dunhuang
area, such as the Western Thousand
Buddha Caves, and the Yulin Caves
farther away. The caves contain
some of the finest examples of
Buddhist art spanning a period of
[1]
1,000 years. The first caves were
dug out in 366 CE as places of
[2]
Buddhist meditation and worship.
The Mogao Caves are the best
known of the Chinese Buddhist
grottoes and, along with Longmen
Grottoes and Yungang Grottoes, are
one of the three famous ancient
Buddhist sculptural sites of China.
An important cache of documents
was discovered in 1900 in the
so-called "Library Cave," which had
been walled-up in the 11th century.
The content of the library was
dispersed around the world, and the
largest collections are now found in
Beijing, London, Paris and Berlin, and
the International Dunhuang Project
exists to coordinate and collect
scholarly work on the Dunhuang
manuscripts and other material. The
caves themselves are now a popular
tourist destination, with a number
open for visiting.

UNESCO World Heritage Site

Mogao Caves
Name as inscribed on the World Heritage List (http://whc.unesco.org/en/list)

Country

China

Type

Cultural

Criteria

i, ii, iii, iv, v, vi

Reference

440
(http://whc.unesco.org
/en/list/440)

UNESCO region (http://whc.unesco.org

Asia-Pacific

/en/list/?search=&search_by_country=&
type=&media=&region=&order=region)

Inscription history
Inscription

1987 (11th Session)

Location in China

Contents

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1 History
2 Discovery and revival
3 The Library Cave
3.1 Dunhuang manuscripts
4 Art
4.1 Architecture
4.2 Murals
4.3 Sculptures
4.4 Paintings on silk and paper
4.5 Printed images
4.6 Textiles
5 Caves
6 Gallery
7 See also
8 Footnotes
9 References
10 External links

History
Dunhuang was established as a frontier garrison outpost by
the Han Dynasty Emperor Wudi to protect against the Xiongnu
in 111 BCE. It also became an important gateway to the West,
a centre of commerce along the Silk Road, as well as a
meeting place of various people and religions such as
Buddhism.
The construction of the Mogao Caves near Dunhuang is
generally taken to have begun sometime in the fourth century
CE. According to a book written during the reign of Tang
Empress Wu, Fokan Ji ( , An Account of Buddhist
Shrines) by Li Junxiu ( ), a Buddhist monk named L
Zn (
, which may also be pronounced Yuezun) had a
vision of a thousand Buddhas bathed in golden light at the site
[3]
in 366 CE, inspiring him to build a cave here. The story is
also found in other sources, such as in inscriptions on a stele
in cave 332, an earlier date of 353 CE however was given in
another document, Shazhou Tujing (
, Geography of
[4]
Details of painting of the meeting
Shazhou). He was later joined by a second monk Faliang (
of Manjusri and Vimalakirti. Cave
), and the site gradually grew, by the time of the Northern
159.
Liang a small community of monks had formed at the site.
Members of the ruling family of Northern Wei and Northern
Zhou constructed many caves here, and it flourished in the short-lived Sui Dynasty. By the Tang
[5]
Dynasty, the number of caves had reached over a thousand.
The caves initially served only as a place of meditation for hermit monks, but developed to serve
the monasteries that sprung up nearby in the early periods, and by the Sui and Tang dynasties,
[6]
Mogao Caves had become a place of worship and pilgrimage for the public. From the 4th until
the 14th century, caves were constructed by monks to serve as shrines with funds from donors.
These caves were elaborately painted, the cave paintings and architecture served as aids to
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meditation, as visual representations of the quest for enlightenment, as mnemonic devices, and as
teaching tools to inform those illiterate about Buddhist beliefs and stories. The major caves were
sponsored by patrons such as important clergy, local ruling elite, foreign dignitaries, as well as
Chinese emperors. Other caves may be funded by merchants, military officers, and other local
people such as women's groups.
During the Tang Dynasty, Dunhuang became the main hub of commerce of the Silk Road and a
major religious centre. A large number of the caves were constructed at Mogao during this era,
including the two large statues of Buddha at the site, the largest one constructed in 695 following
[7]
an edict a year earlier by Tang Empress Wu Zetian to build giant statues across the country. The
site escaped the persecution of Buddhists ordered by Emperor Wuzong in 845 as it was then
under Tibetan control. As a frontier town, Dunhuang had been occupied at various times by other
non-Han Chinese people. After the Tang Dynasty, the site went into a gradual decline, and
construction of new caves ceased entirely after the Yuan Dynasty. Islam had conquered much of
Central Asia, and the Silk Road declined in importance when trading via sea-routes began to
dominate Chinese trade with the outside world. During the Ming Dynasty, the Silk Road was finally
officially abandoned, and Dunhuang slowly became depopulated and largely forgotten by the
outside world. Most of the Mogao caves were abandoned, the site however was still a place of
pilgrimage and used as a place of worship by local people at the beginning of the twentieth
century when there was renewed interest in the site.

Discovery and revival

During late nineteenth century and early twentieth century,
Western explorers began to show interest in the ancient Silk
Road and the lost cities of Central Asia, and those who passed
through Dunhuang noted the murals and artifacts such as the
Stele of Sulaiman at Mogao. The biggest discovery however
came from a Chinese Taoist named Wang Yuanlu who
appointed himself guardian of some of these temples around
the turn of the century.
Some of the caves had by then been blocked by sand, and
Wang set about clearing away the sand and made an attempt
at repairing the site. In one such cave, on 25 June 1900, Wang
discovered a walled up area behind one side of a corridor
[8][9]
leading to a main cave.
Behind the wall was a small cave
stuffed with an enormous hoard of manuscripts. In the next few
years, Wang took some manuscripts to show to various
officials who expressed varying level of interest, but in 1904
Wang re-sealed the cave following an order by the governor of
Gansu.

Bodhisattva leading a lady donor

towards the Pure Lands. Painting
on silk (Library Cave), Late Tang.

Words of Wang's discovery drew the attention of a joint

British/Indian group led by Hungarian archaeologist Aurel
Stein who was on an archaeological expedition in the area in
[10]
1907.
Stein negotiated with Wang to allow him to remove a significant number of manuscripts
as well as the finest paintings and textiles for a fee. He was followed by a French expedition under
Paul Pelliot who acquired many thousands of items in 1908, and then by a Japanese expedition
under Otani Kozui in 1911 and a Russian expedition under Sergei F. Oldenburg in 1914. A
well-known scholar Luo Zhenyu edited some of the manuscripts Pelliot acquired into a volume
[11]
which was then published in 1909 as "Manuscripts of the Dunhuang Caves" (
).

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Stein and Pelliot provoked much interest in the West about the Dunhuang Caves, however, there
were initially little interest in official circles in China. Concerned that the remaining manuscripts
might be lost, Luo Zhenyu and others persuaded the Ministry of Education to recover the rest of
the manuscripts to be sent to Peking (Beijing) in 1910. However, not all the remaining manuscripts
were taken to Peking, and of those retrieved, some were then stolen. Some of the caves were
damaged when the caves were used by the local authority in 1921 to house Russian soldiers
fleeing the civil war following the Russian Revolution. In 1924, American explorer Langdon Warner
[12]
removed a number of murals as well as a statue from some of the caves.
The situation improved in 1941, when the painter
Zhang Daqian arrived at the caves with a small team of
assistants and stayed for two and a half years to repair
and copy the murals. He then exhibited and published
the copies of the murals, which helped to publicize and
give much prominence to the art of Dunhuang within
[13]
China.
Historian Xiang Da then persuaded Yu
Youren, a prominent member of the Kuomintang
(Chinese Nationalist Party), to set up an institution,
Research Institute of Dunhuang Art (which later
The travel of Zhang Qian to the West,
became the Dunhuang Academy), at Mogao in 1944 to
mural from cave 323, 618-712 AD. Detail
look after the site and its contents. In 1956, the first
view.
Premier of the People's Republic of China, Zhou Enlai,
took a personal interest in the caves and sanctioned a
grant to repair and protect the site; and in 1961, the Mogao Caves were declared to be a specially
protected historical monument by the State Council, and large-scale renovation work at Mogao
began soon afterwards. The site escaped the widespread damage caused during the Cultural
[7]
Revolution.
[14]

Today, the site is the subject of an ongoing archaeological project.

The Mogao Caves became
[1]
one of the UNESCO World Heritage Sites in 1987. From 1988 to 1995 a further 248 caves were
[15]
discovered to the North of the 487 caves known since the early 1900s.

The Library Cave

The cave no. 17 discovered by Wang Yuanlu came to be known as the Library Cave. It is sited off
the entrance leading to cave no.16, and was originally used as a memorial cave for a local monk
Hongbian on his death in 862 CE. Hongbian, from a wealthy Wu family, was responsible for the
construction of cave 16, and the Library Cave may have been used as his retreat in his lifetime.
The cave originally contained his statue which was moved to another cave when it was used to
keep manuscripts, some of which bear Hongbian's seal. Large number of documents dating from
406 to 1002 CE were found in the cave, heaped up in closely packed layers of bundles of scrolls.
The Library Cave also contained textiles such as banners, numerous damaged figurines of
Buddhas, and other Buddhist paraphernalia. According to Stein who was the first to describe the
[16]
cave in its original state:

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Heaped up in layers, but without any order, there appeared in the dim light of the
priest's little lamp a solid mass of manuscript bundles rising to a height of nearly ten
feet, and filling, as subsequent measurement showed, close on 500 cubic feet. The
area left clear within the room was just sufficient for two people to stand in.
Aurel Stein, Ruins of Desert Cathay: Vol. II

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The Library Cave was walled off sometime early in the 11th
century. A number of theories have been proposed as the
reason for sealing the caves. Stein first proposed that the cave
had become a waste repository for venerable, damaged and
used manuscripts and hallowed paraphernalia and then sealed
perhaps when the place came under threat. Following this
interpretation some suggested that the handwritten
manuscripts of the Tripitaka became obsolete when printing
became widespread, the older manuscripts were therefore
[17]
stored away.
Another suggestion is that the cave was
simply used as a book storehouse for documents which
accumulated over a century and a half, then sealed up when it
[18]
became full.
Others, such as Pelliot, suggested an alternative scenario, that
the monks hurriedly hid the documents in advance of an attack
by invaders, perhaps when Xi Xia invaded in 1035. This theory
was proposed in light of the absence of documents from Xi Xia
and the disordered state Pelliot found the room in (perhaps a
misinterpretation because the room was disturbed by Stein the
year before). Another theory posits that the items were from a
monastic library and hidden due to threats from Muslims who
were moving eastward. This theory proposes that that the
monks of a nearby monastery heard about the fall of the
Buddhist kingdom of Khotan to Karakhanids invaders from
Kashgar in 1006 and the destruction it caused, so they sealed
[19]
their library to avoid them being destroyed.
The latest date
recorded in the documents found in the cave is generally
accepted to be 1002, and although other dates have been
suggested, the cave was likely to have been sealed not long
after that date.

Abbot Wang Yuanlu in 1900.

Dunhuang manuscripts
Main article: Dunhuang manuscripts
The manuscripts from the Library Cave date from fifth century
until early eleventh century when it was sealed. Up to 50,000
Paul Pelliot examining
manuscripts may have been kept there, one of the greatest
manuscripts in the Library Cave,
treasure troves of ancient documents found. While most of
1908
them are in Chinese, a large number of documents are in
various other languages such as Tibetan, Uigur, Sanskrit, and
Sogdian, including the then little-known Khotanese. They may be old hemp paper scrolls in
Chinese and many other languages, Tibetan pothis, and paintings on hemp, silk or paper. The
subject matter of the great majority of the scrolls is Buddhist in nature, but it also covers a diverse
material. Along with the expected Buddhist canonical works are original commentaries, apocryphal
works, workbooks, books of prayers, Confucian works, Taoist works, Nestorian Christian works,
works from the Chinese government, administrative documents, anthologies, glossaries,
dictionaries, and calligraphic exercises.
Many of the manuscripts were previously unknown or thought lost, and the manuscripts provide a
unique insight into religious and secular matters of Northern China as well as other Central Asian

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[20]

kingdoms from the early periods, through to Tang and early Song Dynasty.
The manuscripts
found in the Library Cave include the earliest dated printed book, the Diamond Sutra from 868 CE
which was first translated from Sanskrit into Chinese in the fourth century. These scrolls also
include manuscripts that ranged from the Nestorian Jesus Sutras to Dunhuang Go Manual and
ancient music scores, as well as the image of the Chinese astronomy Dunhuang map. These
scrolls chronicle the development of Buddhism in China, record the political and cultural life of the
time, as well as providing documents of mundane secular matters that give a rare glimpse into the
lives of ordinary people of these eras.
The manuscripts were dispersed all over the world in the aftermath of the discovery. Stein's
acquisition was split between Britain and India because his expedition was funded by both
countries. Stein had the first pick and he was able to collect around 7,000 complete manuscripts
and 6,000 fragments for which he paid 130, although these include many duplicate copies of the
Diamond and Lotus Sutras. Pelliot took almost 10,000 documents for the equivalent of 90, but
unlike Stein, Pelliot was a trained sinologist literate in Chinese, and he was allowed to examine
the manuscripts freely, he was therefore able to pick a better selection of documents than Stein.
Pelliot was interested in the more unusual and exotic of the Dunhuang manuscripts such as those
dealing with the administration and financing of the monastery and associated lay men's groups.
Many of these manuscripts survived only because they formed a type of palimpsest whereby
papers were reused and Buddhist texts were written on the opposite side of the paper. Hundreds
more of the manuscripts were sold by Wang to Otani Kozui and Sergei Oldenburg. Efforts are now
underway to reconstitute the Library Cave manuscripts digitally, and they are now available as part
of International Dunhuang Project.

Art
The art of Dunhuang covers more than ten major genres, such
as architecture, stucco sculpture, wall paintings, silk paintings,
calligraphy, woodblock printing, embroidery, literature, music
[21]
and dance, and popular entertainment.

Architecture
The caves are examples of rock-cut architecture, but unlike
Longmen Grottoes and Yungang Grottoes, the local rock is a
rather soft gravel conglomerate that is not suitable for either
[22]
sculpture or elaborate architectural details.
Many of the
early caves developed earlier Buddhist rock-cut chaitya styles
seen in places such as the Ajanta Caves in India, with a
square-sectioned central column, with sculpture in niches,
representing the stupa round which worshippers may
circumambulate (parikrama) and gain blessings. Others are
hall caves influenced by traditional Chinese and Buddhist
temple architecture. These caves may have a truncated
pyramidal ceiling sometimes painted to resemble a tent, or
they may have a flat or gabled ceiling that imitates traditional
buildings. Some of the caves used for meditation are
adaptations of the Indian vihara (monastery) cave plan and
contain side-chambers just large enough for one person to sit
in.

Mural of Avalokitevara
(Guanyin), Worshipping
Bodhisattvas and Mendicant in
cave 57. Figures originally
adorned with gold leaf. Early
Tang.

Many of the caves originally had wooden porches or fore-temples built out from the cliff, but most

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of these have decayed or been lost in other ways, with only five remaining, the two earliest of
which are rare surviving examples of Song dynasty wooden architecture.

Murals
The most fully painted caves have painting all over the walls
and ceilings, with geometrical or plant decoration filling the
spaces not taken by figurative images, which are above all of
the Buddha. Sculpture is also brightly painted. The murals on
the caves date from a period of over a thousand years, from
the 5th to the 14th century; many were repainted at later points
within the period. The murals are extensive, covering an area
of 490,000 square feet (45,000 m). They are valued for the
scale and richness of content as well as their artistry. Buddhist
subjects are most common, however some have traditional
mythical subjects and portraits of patrons. These murals
document the changing styles of Buddhist art in China for
nearly a thousand years. The artistry of the murals reached its
apogee during the Tang period, and the quality of the work
dropped after the tenth century.
Early murals showed a strong Indian and Central Asian
influence in the painting techniques used, the composition and
style of the paintings as well as costumes worn by the figures,
but a distinct Dunhuang style began to emerge during
[23]
Northern Wei Dynasty.
Motifs of Chinese, Central Asian and
Indian origin may be found in a single cave, and Chinese
[23]
elements increased during the Western Wei period.
Detail of mural commemorating
the victory of General Zhang
Yichao over the Tibetans. Cave
156, Late Tang Dynasty.

A common motif in many caves is the areas entirely covered by rows of small seated Buddha
figures, after which this and other "Thousand Buddhas Caves" are named. These small Buddhas
were drawn using stencils so that identical figures may be replicated. Flying apsaras, or celestial
beings may be depicted in the ceiling or above the Buddhas, and figures of donors may be shown
along the bottom of the walls. The paintings often depict jataka tales which are stories of the life of
Buddha, or avadana which are parables of the doctrine of karma.
Bodhisattvas started appearing during the Northern Zhou period, with Avalokitesvara (Guanyin),
which was originally male but acquired female characteristics later, the most popular. Most caves
show Mahayana and Sravakayana (Theravada or Hinayana) influences, although Mahayana
Buddhism became the dominant form during the Sui Dyansty. An innovation of the Sui-Tang period
is the visual representation of the sutra - Mahayana Buddhist teachings transformed into large
[24]
complete and detailed narrative paintings.
One of the central features of Tang art in Mogao is
the representation of the paradise of the Pure Land, indicating the increasing popularity of this
school of Mahayana Buddhism in the Tang era. The iconography of Tantric Buddhism, such as the
eleven-headed or thousand-armed Avalokitesvara, also started to appear in Mogao wall paintings
during the Tang period it became popular during the Tibetan occupation of Dunhuang and the
[7]
subsequent periods, especially during the Yuan dynasty.
While Buddhist art is stylistically distinct from secular art, the style of paintings in the caves often
reflects that of contemporary secular painting (insofar as we know of this), especially those
depicting secular scenes. Donor figures are generally depicted in secular style, and may include
secular events associated with them, for example scenes depicting General Zhang Yichao, who
ruled over Dunhuang in a quasi-autonomous manner during the Late Tang period, include a

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commemoration of his victory over the Tibetans in 848. The

portraits of donors increased in size during the period ruled by
the Cao family who succeeded the Zhang family. The Caos
formed alliances with the Uyghurs and the Kingdom of Khotan
and their portraits are featured prominently in some of the
[25]
caves.
Many of the figures have
darkened due to oxidation
of the lead-based pigments
from exposure to air and
light. Many early figures in
the murals in Dunhuang
also used painting
techniques originated from
India where shading was
Figures showing shading
applied to achieve a
Early mural revealed after later
technique, and on the left, the
3-dimensional or
over-painting had been partly
[26]
effect of darkening of the paint
chiaroscuro effect.
removed. The flesh tones of the
used in shading which changed
However, the darkening of
figure with its pigments protected
the appearance of the figure.
the paint used in shading
from oxidation contrast with the
over time resulted in heavy
darkened tone of buddhas in later
outlines which is not what the painters had originally intended.
painting seen on the right. Cave
This shading technique is unique to Dunhuang in East Asia at
253, Northern Wei.
this period as such shading on human faces was generally not
done in Chinese paintings until much later when there were
influences from European paintings. Another difference from traditional Chinese painting is the
presence of figures that are semi-nude, occasionally fully nude, as figures are generally fully
clothed in Chinese paintings. Many of the murals have been repaired or plastered over and
repainted over the centuries, and older murals may be seen where sections of later paintings had
been removed.

Sculptures
There are around 2,400 surviving clay sculptures at Mogao. These were first constructed on a
wooden frame, padded with reed, then modelled in clay stucco, and finished with paint. The giant
statues however have a stone core. The Buddha is generally shown as the central statue, often
attended by boddhisattvas, heavenly kings, devas, apsaras, along with yaksas and other mythical
[24]
creatures.
Figures from the Sui and Tang periods may be present as larger groups of seven or
nine, and some showed large-scale parinirvana scene with groups of mourners. The early
sculptures were based on Indian and Central Asian prototypes, with some in Greco-Indian style of
Gandhara. Over time the sculptures showed more Chinese elements and became gradually
sinicized.
The original function of the "Library Cave" was as a shrine commemorating Hong Bian, a
9th-century abbot (not at Dunhuang). His portrait statue, unusual here and among all surviving
works in China, was removed to another spot when the cave was sealed up in the 11th century,
but has been returned now the library has been removed. There is also a stone stele describing
his life, and the wall behind the statue is painted with attendant figure; such blending of painted
[27]
sculpture and wall paintings into a single composition is very common at the site.

Paintings on silk and paper

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Before the discovery in the Library Cave, original paintings from the Tang dynasty, a formative
period in Chinese art, were very rare, and most of the surviving evidence was from copies made in
later periods. Over a thousand paintings on silk, banners, and embroideries were found in the
[28]
Library Cave, none apparently dating before the late 7th century.
The great majority of the
paintings are anonymous, but many are of high quality, especially from the Tang. Most are sutra
paintings, images of Buddha, and narrative paintings. The paintings show something of the
contemporary Chinese style of the capital Chang'an, but many also reflect Indian, Tibetan and
[29]
Uighur painting styles.
There are brush paintings in ink alone, some in just two colours, as well as many in full colour.
Most common are single figures, and most paintings were probably donated by an individual, who
is often portrayed on a diminutive scale. The donor figures become notably more elaborate in
[30]
dress by the 10th century (see example illustrated).

Printed images
The Library Cave is equally important as a source of
rare early images and texts produced by woodblock
printing, including the famous Diamond Sutra, the
earliest printed book to survive. Other printed images
were made to be hung, often with text below
containing prayers and sometimes a dedication by the
pious commissioner; at least two prints were
commissioned by Cao Yuanzhong, Imperial
Commissioner at Dunhuang in 947. Many of the
images have colour added by hand to the printed
outline. Several sheets contain repeated impressions
of the same block with a Buddha image. Possibly
these reflect stock for cutting when sold to pilgrims,
but inscriptions in some examples show these were
also printed out at different times by an individual as a
devotion to acquire merit. It is unclear whether such
people owned their own blocks, or visited a monastery
[31]
to have the images printed.

The Chinese Diamond Stra, the oldest

known dated printed book in the world,
British Library Or.8210/P.2 (http://idp.bl.uk
/database
/oo_loader.a4d?pm=Or.8210%2FP.2).

Textiles

Detail of embroidered panel from

the Library Cave. Tang Dynasty.

necktie.

The textiles found in the Library Cave include silk banners,

altar hangings, wrappings for manuscripts, and monks' apparel
(kya). The monks normally used fabrics consisting of a
patchwork of different scraps of cloth as a sign of humility,
these therefore provide valuable insights into the various type
[32]
of silk cloth and embroidery available at the time.
Silk
banners were used to adorn the cliff-face at the caves during
festivals, and these are painted and may be embroidered.
Valances used to decorate altars and temples had a horizontal
strip at the top, from which hung streamers made from strips of
different cloths ending in a V that look like a modern male

[33]

Caves

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The caves were cut into the side of a cliff which is close to two
kilometers long. At its height during the Tang Dynasty, there
were more than a thousands caves, but over time, many of the
caves were lost, including the earliest caves. 735 caves
currently exist in Mogao, the best-known ones are the 487
caves located in the southern section of the cliff which are
places of pilgrimage and worship. 248 caves have also been
found to the north which were living quarters, meditation
chambers and burial sites for the monks. The caves at the
southern section are decorated, while those at the northern
section are mostly plain.
The caves are clustered together according to their era, with
new caves from a new dynasty being constructed in different
part of the cliff. From the murals, sculptures and other objects
found in the caves, around five hundred caves were
determined to be built in the following era (list from the 1980s,
more have been identified since):

Flying apsaras, or celestial

beings. Caves 285, 538-539 AD,
Western Wei Dynasty

Sixteen Kingdoms (366-439) - 7 caves, the oldest dated to Northern Liang period.
Northern Wei (439-534) and Western Wei (535-556) - 10 from each phase
Northern Zhou (557-580) - 15 caves
Sui Dynasty (581-618) - 70 caves
Early Tang (618- 704) - 44 caves
High Tang (705-780) - 80 caves
Middle Tang (781-847) - 44 caves (This era in Dunhuang is also known as the Tibetan period
because Dunhuang was then under Tibetan occupation.)
Late Tang (848-906) - 60 caves (This and the subsequent periods until the Western Xia
period are also known collectively as the Guiyijun period ( , Return to Righteousness
Army, 848-1036) when Dunhuang was ruled by the Zhang and Cao families.)
The Five Dynasty (907-960) - 32 caves
Song Dynasty (960-1035)- 43 caves
Western Xia (10361226) - 82 caves
Yuan Dynasty (12271368) - 10 caves

Gallery

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A painting of
Xuanzang performing
ceremonies for the
Buddha.

Another figure of
Xuanzang

10th century mural

from Cave 61,
showing Tang
Buddhist monasteries
of Mount Wutai,
Shanxi province

The travel of Zhang

Qian to the West,
complete view, c. 700
CE

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http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mogao_Caves

The travel of Zhang

Qian to the West,
close-up view of
Emperor Han Wudi
(156 87 BCE)
worshipping two
statues of the Buddha

A Tang Chinese silk

Vajrapani Painting at
landscape painting
Mogao Caves
depicting a young
(Library Cave)
Sakyamuni cutting his
hair

Bandit attacks

Mural of bodhisattvas

Vaishravana riding
across the waters.
Five Dynasties,
mid-10th century CE.

Worshipping
Bodhisattva, cave
285, Wei Dynasty.

An illustration of
Sakyamuni's
temptation by Mara

Dancer, cave 220,

early Tang Dynasty.

Section of mural
commemorating
victory of Zhang
Yichao over the
Tibetans. Cave 156,
Late Tang.

Wife of Dunhuang
ruler Cao Yanlu who
was the daughter of
the King of Khotan
wearing elaborate
headdress decorated
with jade pieces.
Cave 61, Five
Dynasties.

Khotanese donor
figures, cave 61.

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Mogao Caves - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Depiction of the
avadana story of Five
Hundred Robbers.
Cave 285, Western
Wei.

Uighur king attended

by servants. Cave
409, Western Xia.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mogao_Caves

Figures from cave

409, Western Xia.

See also
List of World Heritage Sites in China
Buddhism in China
International Dunhuang Project
Silk Road transmission of Buddhism
Stele of Sulaiman
Irk Bitig
Dunhuang Go Manual
Silk Road
Three hares
Bezeklik Thousand Buddha Caves
Kizil Caves
Kumtura Thousand Buddha Caves

Footnotes
ab

1. ^
"Mogao Caves" (http://whc.unesco.org
/en/list/440). UNESCO. Retrieved 2007-08-05.
2. ^ Zhang Wengin
3. ^ Fokan Ji Original text:

4. ^ Le Huu Phuoc (2010). Buddhist Architecture
(http://books.google.co.uk
/books?id=9jb364g4BvoC&
printsec=frontcover&
source=gbs_ge_summary_r&
cad=0#v=onepage&q&f=false). Grafikol.
ISBN 978-0-9844043-0-8.
5. ^ "Dunhuang -- Mogao Caves --"
(http://www.travelchinaguide.com/attraction
/gansu/dunhuang/mogao_grottoes/index.htm).
Retrieved 2007-07-23.
6. ^ Xiuqing Yang (2007). Dunhuang Sees Great
Changes Over the Years. China
Intercontinental Press. ISBN 7-5085-0916-1.

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abc

7. ^
Tan, Chung (1994). Dunhuang art:
through the eyes of Duan Wenjie
(http://books.google.co.uk
/books?id=0SdXEVaFTJ0C&
printsec=frontcover&
source=gbs_ge_summary_r&
cad=0#v=onepage&q=daqin&f=false). Indira
Gandhi National Centre for the Arts.
ISBN 81-7017-313-2.
8. ^ Wenjie Duan (1 January 1994). Dunhuang
Art: Through the Eyes of Duan Wenjie.
Abhinav Publications. p. 52.
ISBN 978-81-7017-313-7.
9. ^ "Chinese Exploration and Excavations in
Chinese Central Asia" (http://idp.bl.uk/pages
/collections_ch.a4d). International Dunhuang
Project. Retrieved 2007-08-07.
10. ^ Aurel Stein, Serindia vol. II (http://dsr.nii.ac.jp
/toyobunko/VIII-5-B2-9/V-2/page/0283.html.en)
pg. 801-802
11. ^ Dunhuang shi shi yi shu

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Mogao Caves - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

12.

13.

14.

15.

16.

17.

18.

19.

(http://www.worldcat.org/title/dunhuang-shi-shiyi-shu/oclc/52768538)
^ Peter Hopkirk (2006). Foreign Devils on the
Silk Road (http://books.google.co.uk
/books?id=DoxsQDBQHYEC&
printsec=frontcover&f=false#v=onepage&
q&f=false). John Murray.
ISBN 978-0-7195-6448-2.
^ The Epochal Significance in Zhang Daqian's
Copies of Dunhuang Fresco
(http://www.icm.gov.mo/exhibition/daqian
/significanceE.asp)
^ "The International Dunhuang Project"
(http://idp.bl.uk/). International Dunhuang
Project. Retrieved 2007-08-05.
^ Brief report on the both the southern and
northern caves (http://dsr.nii.ac.jp/rarebook
/05/index.html.en)
^ Opening of the hidden chapel
(http://dsr.nii.ac.jp/toyobunko/VIII-5-B2-8
/V-2/page/0246.html.en) M. Aurel Stein, Ruins
of Desert Cathay: Vol II
^ Akira, Fujieda, "The Tun-Huan Manuscripts",
in Essays on the sources for Chinese history
(1973). edited by Donald D. Leslie, Colin
Mackerras, and Wang Gungwu. Australian
National University, ISBN 0-87249-329-6
^ The Provenance and Character of the
Dunhuang Documents (http://www.toyobunko.or.jp/newresearch/upload
/2010011510422259.pdf)
^ The Nature of the Dunhuang Library Cave
and the Reasons for its Sealing
(http://www.persee.fr/web/revues
/home/prescript/article

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mogao_Caves

20.

21.

22.
23.

24.

25.
26.
27.
28.
29.

30.
31.
32.

33.

/asie_0766-1177_1999_num_11_1_1155)
^ Whitfield, Susan (2004). The Silk Road:
Trade, Travel, War and Faith. British Library,
Serindia Publications.
ISBN 978-1-932476-13-2.
^ Whitfield, Roderick, Susan Whitfield, and
Neville Agnew. "Cave Temples of Dunhuang:
Art and History on the Silk Road" (2000). The
British Library. ISBN 0-7123-4697-X
^ Whitfield and Farrer, pp 13-14
ab
^
Yang Xin, Rihard M. Branhart, Nie
Chongzheng, James Cahill, Lang Shaojun, Wu
Hung. Three Thousands Years of Chinese
Paintings. Yale University Press.
ISBN 978-0-300-07013-2.
ab
^
Fan Jinshi (2010). The Caves of
Dunhuang. The Dunhuang Academy.
ISBN 978-1-85759-540-6.
^ Dunhuang Academy - Portraits of Donors
(http://enweb.dha.ac.cn/003E/index.htm)
^ Yun-ran ( ) a painting technique
(http://enweb.dha.ac.cn/003F/index.htm)
^ Whitfield and Farrer, pp 16-17
^ Whitfield and Farrer, p 20
^ Fan Jinshi (2010). The Caves of Dunhuang.
The Dunhuang Academy. p. 235.
ISBN 978-1-85759-540-6.
^ Whitfield and Farrer, pp 21, and numbers 41
and 42
^ Whitfield and Farrer, pp 99-107
^ Jessica Rawson (1992). The British Museum
Book of Chinese Art. British Museum Press.
ISBN 0-7141-1453-7.
^ Whitfield and Farrer, p. 116

References

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Duan Wenjie [editor-in-chief], Mural Paintings of the Dunhuang Mogao Grotto (1994)
Kenbun-Sha, Inc. / China National Publications Import and Export Corporation, ISBN
4-906351-04-2
Fan Jinshi, The Caves of Dunhuang. (2010) The Dunhuang Academy. ISBN
978-1-85759-540-6
Hopkirk, Peter. Foreign Devils on the Silk Road: The Search for the Lost Cities and
Treasures of Chinese Central Asia (1980). Amherst: The University of Massachusetts Press.
ISBN 0-87023-435-8
Stein, M. Aurel. Ruins of Desert Cathay: Personal Narrative of Explorations in Central Asia
and Westernmost China, volume 2 (1912). London: Macmillan.
Tan Chung, Dunhuang art: through the eyes of Duan Wenjie (http://books.google.co.uk
/books?id=0SdXEVaFTJ0C&printsec=frontcover) (1994). Indira Gandhi National Centre for
the Art. ISBN 81-7017-313-2
Whitfield, Roderick and Farrer, Anne, Caves of the Thousand Buddhas: Chinese Art from the
Silk Route (1990), British Museum Publications, ISBN 0714114472
Whitfield, Roderick, Susan Whitfield, and Neville Agnew. "Cave Temples of Mogao: Art and
History on the Silk Road" (2000). Los Angeles: The Getty Conservation Institute. ISBN
0-89236-585-4

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Mogao Caves - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mogao_Caves

Wood, Frances, "The Caves of the Thousand Buddhas: Buddhism on the Silk Road" in "The
Silk Road: Two Thousand Years in the Heart of Asia" (2002) by Frances Wood. Berkeley:
University of California Press. ISBN 0-520-23786-2
Zhang Wenbin, ed. "Dunhuang: A Centennial Commemoration of the Discovery of the Cave
Library" (2000). Beijing: Morning Glory Publishers. ISBN 7-5054-0716-3

External links
Dunhuang Academy (http://enweb.dha.ac.cn/index.htm)
A large collections of images of murals and other artifacts from the Mogao Caves in
Dunhuang (http://schiller.dartmouth.edu/chinese/MogaoCaves/index.php)
International Dunhuang Project (http://idp.bl.uk/)
Mogao caves video (http://www.dailymotion.com/video/xeg3xd_paul-pelliot-et-le-tresornational_travel)
Harvard Art Museums, some murals and a statue removed from Dunhuang by Langdon
Warner (http://www.harvardartmuseums.org/art/search?search_api_aggregation_1=mogao)
British Museum The cave-temples at Dunhuang (http://www.britishmuseum.org/explore
/online_tours/asia/caves_of_the_1000_buddhas/caves_of_the_thousand_buddhas.aspx)
Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Mogao_Caves&oldid=571913926"
Categories: Former populated places in China Central Asian Buddhist sites
Chinese Buddhist grottoes Sites along the Silk Road World Heritage Sites in China
Chinese architectural history Dunhuang Buildings and structures in Gansu
Buddhist pilgrimages Caves of Gansu Visitor attractions in Gansu Chinese painting
Rock cut architecture Buddhist Caves

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