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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.
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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
393:. The Yungang Grottoes are considered by UNESCO to be a "masterpiece of early Chinese Buddhist cave art... ...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
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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
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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
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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
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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,
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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.
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441:), 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
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483:. 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
465:. 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.
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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
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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
833:
Salmon, Lynn G.; Christoforou, Christos S.; Cass, Glen R. (1994). "Airborne
Pollutants in the Buddhist Cave Temples at the Yungang Grottoes, China".
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Salmon, Lynn G.; Christoforou, Christos S.; Cass, Glen R. (1994). "Airborne
Pollutants in the Buddhist Cave Temples at the Yungang Grottoes, China".
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Cave 12. Phase II, after 650 AD. Yungang
Grottoes, Datong: a riot of decoration is illustrated here, with Buddhas, musicians, and apsarasas.
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Conservation of
Ancient Sites on the Silk Road: Proceedings of an International Conference on the Conservation of Grotto Sites
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Conservation of
Ancient Sites on the Silk Road: Proceedings of an International Conference on the Conservation of Grotto Sites
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damaged many of the carvings, and bullet marks are still visible to observers. During April and May 1991,
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and one of the three most famous ancient Buddhist sculptural sites of China. The others are
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Wisdom embodied: Chinese Buddhist and Daoist sculpture in the Metropolitan Museum of Art
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Cave 12. Phase II, after 465 AD. Yungang Grottoes, Datong: musicians playing the
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Written and Unwritten: A New History of the Buddhist Caves at Yungang
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Protecting the Yungang Grottoes from Air Pollution Damage
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The site is located about 16 km west of the city of
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Major National Historical and Cultural Sites in Shanxi
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911:. Vancouver: University of British Columbia Press.
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971:UNESCO World Heritage page about Yungang Grottoes
926:Leidy, Denise Patry & Strahan, Donna (2010).
1464:Migratory Bird Sanctuaries along the Coast of
1053:Migratory Bird Sanctuaries along the Coast of
1440:Imperial Tombs of the Ming and Qing Dynasties
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934:. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art.
360:, then called Pingcheng, in the province of
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27:Buddhist temple grottoes in Shanxi, China
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835:Environmental Science & Technology
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739:China National Tourism Administration
399:China National Tourism Administration
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574:One of the larger statues at Yungang
822:report of the UNESCO advisory board
429:. They made the city of Pingcheng (
1512:Buddhist pilgrimage sites in China
1399:Mausoleum of the First Qin Emperor
742:. 16 November 2008. Archived from
562:Stone carved dougong inside Cave 9
419:decline of the Western Jin dynasty
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364:. They are excellent examples of
352:temple grottoes built during the
1134:Ancient Building Complex in the
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207:The panorama of Yungang Grottoes
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1527:AAAAA-rated tourist attractions
1275:Sichuan Giant Panda Sanctuaries
51:Yungang Grottoes, Datong, China
604:Statue at the Yungang Grottoes
469:Deterioration and Conservation
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1522:World Heritage Sites in China
1012:World Heritage Sites in China
876:Agnew, Neville (1997-06-19).
685:Agnew, Neville (1997-06-19).
1151:Kaiping Diaolou and Villages
1034:Classical Gardens of Suzhou
950:The Illustrated London News
654:overlook the passing scene.
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1507:Buddhist temples in Shanxi
907:Caswell, James O. (1988).
453:before linking to ancient
38:UNESCO World Heritage Site
1517:Sites along the Silk Road
1502:Chinese Buddhist grottoes
1221:Honghe Hani Rice Terraces
1178:Zuojiang Huashan Rock Art
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356:dynasty near the city of
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1141:Historic Centre of Macau
1027:Archaeological Ruins of
435:), now known as Datong (
214:Traditional Chinese
75:Cultural: i, ii, iii, iv
1333:Ancient City of Pingyao
1303:Chengde Mountain Resort
348:), are ancient Chinese
233:Simplified Chinese
1309:Putuo Zongcheng Temple
1206:Chengjiang Fossil Site
1160:Historic Monuments of
882:. Getty Publications.
767:Silk Road, North China
691:. Getty Publications.
538:Yungang Grottoe Buddha
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1280:Three Parallel Rivers
1084:Cemetery of Confucius
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366:rock-cut architecture
1358:Beijing Central Axis
1172:Gaocheng Observatory
734:"AAAAA Scenic Areas"
141:40.1105°N 113.1259°E
1476:Badain Jaran Desert
1472:of China (Phase II)
1245:Leshan Giant Buddha
1088:Kong Family Mansion
855:10.1021/es00054a010
847:1994EnST...28..805S
801:10.1021/es00054a010
793:1994EnST...28..805S
522:Top of the column (
485:Cultural Revolution
391:World Heritage Site
328:Wuzhoushan Grottoes
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1313:Xumi Fushou Temple
1211:Dazu Rock Carvings
1061:of China (Phase I)
952:, 10 October 1931.
713:"Yungang Grottoes"
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1537:History of Datong
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1445:South China Karst
1409:Xinjiang Tianshan
1168:Shaolin Monastery
479:during the early
395:AAAAA scenic area
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288:Yün-kang Shih-k‘u
261:Standard Mandarin
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178:Location in China
146:40.1105; 113.1259
16:(Redirected from
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1423:Multiple regions
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1343:Temple of Heaven
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1156:Longmen Grottoes
1136:Wudang Mountains
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817:
784:
780:
774:
766:
760:
748:. Retrieved
744:the original
737:
728:
717:. Retrieved
707:
687:
680:
503:
481:Qing dynasty
476:Liao dynasty
472:
459:
427:Northern Wei
416:
385:
378:
354:Northern Wei
343:
327:
321:
305:
303:
268:Hanyu Pinyin
1450:Grand Canal
1404:Mogao Caves
1328:Zhoukoudian
1298:Mount Wutai
1269:Norbulingka
1216:Fanjingshan
1146:Shennongjia
144: /
132:113°07′33″E
119:Coordinates
93:2001 (25th
90:Inscription
1491:Categories
1466:Yellow Sea
1460:Tusi Sites
1455:Silk Roads
1430:Great Wall
1307:including
1254:Dujiangyan
1241:Mount Emei
1231:Jiuzhaigou
1183:Wulingyuan
1055:Yellow Sea
719:2007-09-06
672:References
489:Red Guards
417:After the
345:Wǔzhōushān
282:Wade–Giles
129:40°06′38″N
1470:Bohai Sea
1368:Northeast
1226:Huanglong
1103:West Lake
1070:Mount Tai
1059:Bohai Sea
1049:Huangshan
336:武州山 / 武周山
113:846.81 ha
105:348.75 ha
80:Reference
1162:Dengfeng
1108:Kulangsu
863:22191820
809:22191820
715:. UNESCO
350:Buddhist
71:Criteria
58:Location
1265:Jokhang
1236:Lijiang
1098:Hongcun
1090:in Qufu
843:Bibcode
789:Bibcode
750:9 April
666:Cave 20
524:dougong
509:Gallery
493:Caltech
463:Luoyang
455:Parthia
451:Kashgar
425:-ruled
405:History
397:by the
370:Longmen
332:Chinese
310:Chinese
95:Session
65:, China
18:Yungang
1348:Xanadu
1096:, and
1080:Temple
1044:Lushan
938:
915:
886:
861:
807:
695:
500:Cave 6
413:Cave 9
388:UNESCO
381:Datong
362:Shanxi
358:Datong
342::
340:pinyin
334::
320::
318:pinyin
312::
63:Shanxi
1290:North
1188:Yinxu
652:sheng
447:Wuwei
423:Tuoba
374:Mogao
1315:and
1267:and
1252:and
1243:and
1170:and
1094:Xidi
1086:and
1082:and
1020:East
936:ISBN
913:ISBN
884:ISBN
859:PMID
805:PMID
752:2011
693:ISBN
650:and
648:pipa
372:and
314:云冈石窟
304:The
102:Area
84:1039
851:doi
797:doi
1493::
1311:,
1305:,
1261:,
1164:,
857:.
849:.
839:28
837:.
803:.
795:.
785:28
783:.
736:.
487:,
457:.
438:大同
432:平城
401:.
376:.
338:;
316:;
243:石窟
240:云冈
224:石窟
221:雲崗
1468:–
1057:–
1004:e
997:t
990:v
944:.
921:.
892:.
865:.
853::
845::
811:.
799::
791::
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722:.
701:.
330:(
308:(
97:)
20:)
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