Yungang Grottoes

The Yungang caves were cut into a soft sandstone ridge west of Datong when the Northern Wei court had its capital here, and the carving covers roughly a kilometre of cliff. There are more than two hundred and fifty caves and niches, from shallow recesses the size of a hand to chambers you walk into, their walls packed floor to ceiling with Buddhas, attendants, musicians and flying figures. The best known image is the seated Buddha of cave 20, about fourteen metres high, left exposed when the wooden hall in front of it fell centuries ago. Traces of pigment survive in the sheltered caves, and the earliest groups show clear Central Asian influence in the faces and drapery.

History

The Tuoba-ruled Northern Wei made Pingcheng, today's Datong, their capital and adopted Buddhism early as a state religion, and the first phase of carving, which lasted until 465, produced what are now caves 16-20. A second phase from about 471 to 494, under the supervision and with the support of the imperial court, added the twin caves 5/6, 7/8 and 9/10 and caves 11-13; court patronage ended when the Wei moved their capital to Luoyang in 494, and work under private patrons went on until uprisings stopped it in 525. The Liao built ten temples in front of the main caves in 1049-1060, which a fire wrecked some 60 years later, the wooden buildings before caves 5 and 6 date from 1621, and since the 1950s cracks have been grouted and trees planted against sandstorms (Wikipedia, Yungang Grottoes).

Highlights

• Cave 20 - the great seated Buddha, now open to the weather after its timber hall collapsed.
• The painted caves - interiors where original pigment still shows on ceilings and niches.
• The pillar caves - chambers with a carved central pillar you can walk around.
• The cliff walk - the full run of niches and small caves along the sandstone face.

When to go

Late spring to early autumn is easiest; Datong winters are cold and windy and the site is largely outdoors. Morning light falls on the cliff face, and coach groups build up from mid-morning. Allow half a day, or longer if you want to look at individual caves properly rather than walk the line.

What to expect

The approach now runs through a large new ceremonial avenue and temple complex that has nothing to do with the ancient carving. Several important caves are closed, screened or lit dimly, and photography is restricted inside some of them. Weathering has flattened a lot of detail on the outer niches, and there is little shade on the walkway.

Nearby

Datong's rebuilt old town, the Huayan and Shanhua temples, and the Hanging Temple south of the city.