The Yungang Grottoes (Chinese: 云冈石窟; pinyin: Yúngāng shíkū), formerly the Wuzhoushan Grottoes (Chinese: 武州山 / 武周山; pinyin: Wǔzhōushān), are ancient Chinese Buddhist temple grottoes built during the Northern Wei dynasty near the city of Datong, then called Pingcheng, in the province of Shanxi. They are excellent examples of rock-cut architecture and one of the three most famous ancient Buddhist sculptural sites of China. The others are Longmen and Mogao.
The site is located about 16 km west of the city of Datong, 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.[1]
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 World Heritage Site. The Yungang Grottoes are considered by UNESCO to be a "masterpiece of early Chinese Buddhist cave art... [and] ...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."[2] It is classified as a AAAAA scenic area by the China National Tourism Administration.[3]
^Agnew, Neville (1997-06-19). Conservation of Ancient Sites on the Silk Road: Proceedings of an International Conference on the Conservation of Grotto Sites. Getty Publications. ISBN 9780892364169.
^"Yungang Grottoes". UNESCO. Retrieved 2007-09-06.
^"AAAAA Scenic Areas". China National Tourism Administration. 16 November 2008. Archived from the original on April 4, 2014. Retrieved 9 April 2011.
The YungangGrottoes (Chinese: 云冈石窟; pinyin: Yúngāng shíkū), formerly the Wuzhoushan Grottoes (Chinese: 武州山 / 武周山; pinyin: Wǔzhōushān), are ancient Chinese...
buildings built during or predating the Song dynasty. Also notable are the YungangGrottoes in Datong, Shanxi, which date back over 1500 years. In the Spring and...
1039: YungangGrottoes (PDF), Beijing: State Administration of Cultural Heritage of the People's Republic of China, 2001, p. 1. "YungangGrottoes", World...
are the best known of the Chinese Buddhist grottoes and, along with Longmen Grottoes and YungangGrottoes, are one of the three famous ancient Buddhist...
renamed to Yungang in August 2012, after the nearby YungangGrottoes, a World Heritage Site and popular tourist attraction. In 2024, Datong Yungang Airport...
construction of the YungangGrottoes near Datong during the mid-to-late fifth century, and towards the latter part of the dynasty, the Longmen Grottoes outside the...
capital of the Xianbei-founded Northern Wei dynasty from AD 398–494. The YungangGrottoes were constructed during the later part of this period (460–494). During...
Models, Ars Orientalis, Vol. 35, pp. 67-94 YUNGANGGROTTOES, CHINA Buddhist Caves in China See entry for Yungang 460s-470s, Daniel Waugh, University of Washington...
destroyed Part of the Longmen Grottos No 5 at the YungangGrottoes Detail of the colossal group at the Maijishan Grottoes Kbal Spean, Vishnu and lingams...
Tang dynasty. YungangGrottoes in Datong illustrate rock-cut architecture dating back to the Northern Wei dynasty. Tianlongshan Grottoes in Taiyuan was...
lavishly. He constructed Cave 9-10, the most highly decorated of the YungangGrottoes, and had a temple constructed in 488 at Lirun, Fengyi (modern day Chengcheng)...
Bamiyan in Afghanistan and the Buddhist Grottoes of central China, YungangGrottoes near Datong and Longmen Grottoes near Luoyang. Over the centuries, earthquakes...
The Tianlongshan Grottoes (Chinese: 天龙山石窟; pinyin: Tiānlóngshān Shíkū, English translation: Mountain of the Heavenly Dragon) are caves located in Taiyuan...
with large groups of excavated caves, include the YungangGrottoes, Longmen Grottoes, Maijishan Grottoes, and Mogao Caves. Sculptures in the round, first...
incomplete list of caves in China. It includes natural caves and rock cut grottoes. List of caves Speleology "Chinese Village Finds Alien-Fish in Cave". Weird...
Dipankara. Statues of Dipankara can also be found in the Longmen and YungangGrottoes in China. One story shown in Buddhist art has Gautama Buddha in a former...
Elephanta, Ellora and Mamallapuram in India, the Mogao, Longmen and YungangGrottoes in China, Dambulla in Sri Lanka and Seokguram in South Korea. In addition...
from Tang dynasty, including the Foguang Temple and Nanchan Temple. YungangGrottoes in Datong and numerous Buddhist temples in the sacred Mount Wutai exemplify...
century 62 Temple of Heaven 1420 63 Mogao Caves Around 4th century 64 YungangGrottoes Late 5th century 65 Great Wall of China Around 3rd century BC 66-A...
is Datong, 64 kilometres (40 mi) to the northwest. Along with the YungangGrottoes, the Hanging Temple is one of the main tourist attractions and historical...
the volcanic rock and elaborately painted). The seated Buddha in the YungangGrottoes, Datong (Shanxi), is made (approximate date). The Coptic Orthodox Church...
the Silk Road. This includes Buddhist sites such as the YungangGrottoes, the Longmen Grottoes, and the Mogao Caves. Yang Jian (Emperor Wen) ruled in northern...
Buddha Mount Heng Pagoda of Fogong Temple Pingyao Ancient City Qiao Family Compound Tianlongshan Grottoes Yanmen Pass YungangGrottoes Category Commons...
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