China Travel - Yungang Grottos (2)
Tuesday, September 30th, 2008The No.5 and No.6 Grottos are a set of double grottos adjacent to each other. In front of the grottos there is a five-bay four-storeyed wooden pavilion built in the eighth year (1651) of the Shuizhi reign of the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911). The style of the No.5 Grotto is an oven hut with a front and a back room. In the middle of the back room there is the highest statue of sitting Buddha in the Yungang Grottos, with a height of 17 meters. In the walls of the grotto there are Buddha niches; on the top, beautiful embossments of flying Asparas. The No.6 Grotto is nearly in rectangle, with a 15-meter two-storeyed pagoda column in the middle. The first storey of the column is carved with figures of Buddha and the upper with a small nine-storeyed pagoda. The rest of the walls are carved with figures of the Buddha, the Bodhisattva and the arhats. On the top of the grotto, there are thirty-three heavenly gods and their beasts for riding. The east, south and west walls in the grotto are carved with 33 pieces of pictures illustrating the story of Sakyamuni from his birth to becoming a Buddha. The grotto is among the most representative grottos in the Yungang Grottos.
The Wuhua Cave is numbered as the No.9 to No.13 Grottos. The No.9 and No.10 Grottos are a double grotto in a rectangular shape with front room and back room. The south wall of the front room is carved into an octal column, the lintel of the door to the east and west wall is carved with designs and patterns of plants. The No.11 to No.13 Grottos form a group. In the middle of the No.11 Grotto, there is a rectangular column. The front room of the No.12 Grotto is carved with semi wood palaces and pavilions on the walls; its top are carved with musicians with all kinds of musical instruments in their hands. These are first-hand materials for research into the musical history at that time. In the middle of the No.13 Grotto, there is a 13-meter Buddha of Maitreya. The arch of the door to the south wall is carved with seven figures of standing Buddha. The shape of the sculptures in the Wuhua Cave is diverse, providing important visual materials for research in the fields of art, history, calligraphy, music and architecture.
The grottos in the east area are all pagoda caves, from the No.1 to No.4. The No.1 and No.2 Grottos were chiseled in the same period. In the middle of the cave there is a rectangular column with embossment of five-storeyed pagodas, pavilions and palaces on the walls, which are all important materials to research into the architectures of the North Wei Dynasty. The No.3 Grotto is the one of the largest scale in the Yungang Grottos. The front wall is about 25 meters high and is divided into front and back room. On both sides of the back room, there is one figure of Buddha and two of Bodhisattvas. Judged from the sculpting style and skill, it was carved in the early Tang Dynasty. The door to the south wall of the No.4 Grotto is carved with an epigraph of Zhengguang Years of the Northern Wei, the latest epigraph found in the Yungang Grottos.
The grottos in the west area are from the No.21 to No.53 Grottos, with some not included. Most of them were built later than the 18th year (494) of the Taihe reign of the Northern Wei. The figures of Buddha in these grottos are comparatively slim, giving a sense of pride. The style of the picture of flying Asparas is different from that of earlier time, and close to the sculpture style in the Longmen Grottos. Other grottos are all precious materials for the research into the acrobatics and architectures of the Northern Wei Dynasty.
(Source: chinaculture.org)
