Reading the Architectural History of China: Visiting Yungang Grottoes with Liang Sicheng.

Reading the Architectural History of China: Visiting Yungang Grottoes with Liang Sicheng.

Yungang Grottoes is located at the south foot of Wuzhou Mountain, which is17km west of Datong City, Shanxi Province in northern China. Grottoes are dug along the mountain, stretching from east to west 1 km. There are 45 main caves, 252 caves and niches, and more than 565,438+0,000 stone carvings. It is one of the largest ancient caves in China.

Mr. Liang Sicheng inspected Yungang Grottoes in detail in the Architectural History of China:

In the second year of Xing 'an, Wen Chengdi in the Northern Wei Dynasty (AD 453), Shaman Yao Tan "chiseled the stone wall of the mountain, opened five holes, and each carved a statue of Buddha, 70 feet high and 60 feet long. Carved and decorated, crowned in the world. " So is Yungang Grottoes in the west of datong county today. There are 19 caves and countless niches.

The five caves opened in Yao Tan are located in the west of the cliff, with an oval plane and the shape of a Buddha, which is the most Gu Zhuo. Only Buddha and Bodhisattva statues are carved in the cave, and there are no Buddhist traces or other carvings on the wall. Secondly, the layout of the caves in the middle is mostly square. There is a rectangular outer room in front of the cave, two stone pillars on the door, and many relics and architectural sculptures on the wall, which are chiseled between Emperor Xiaowen and Taihe. What's more, the tower column is carved into a square wooden tower shape.

As far as the cave itself is concerned, building a cave between the Central Taihe is the most interesting building. In front of the outer room, two pillars were carved to form three open corridors. Its outer wall has weathered, and it is difficult to know its original state. The column is octagonal, supported by sumeru, and the stigma is like a vat. There is a door between the outer room and the inner room, and there is a bucket arch bearing roof tile on the door.