IIIFカラー高解像度
国立情報学研究所 - ディジタル・シルクロード・プロジェクト
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| IIIFカラー高解像度 |
| Ruins of Desert Cathay : vol.1 | |
| 中国砂漠地帯の遺跡 : vol.1 |
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引用情報
496 PAINTING OF BUDDHIST LEGEND CH. XLIV
There were finds of interest here too, but I cannot spare
space now to detail them. The general impression I gained
was that the area occupied by these older ruins, though
adjacent to the Tibetan fort, must have been completely
abandoned and practically clear of vegetation when the
latter had its garrison ; for only thus did it seem possible
to account for the remarkable difference seen in the effects
of wind erosion. Near some of the earlier structures this
had excavated the soil down to seventeen feet below the
original level, while round the fort walls the maximum
result of the erosion nowhere exceeded six feet.
After our long weeks of exposure to the bitter cold
and incessant winds it was a real relief when my practic-
able tasks at the site were concluded. And yet it cost me
a wrench to give the order for that final duty of all—the
filling-in again of the interior of the temples, which was
to assure fresh protection for the frescoes. This heavy
piece of earthwork was, with the help of extra men
from Abdal, accomplished on February I I th. It was a
melancholy business to watch those graceful wall-paint-
ings, on which my eyes had so fondly feasted in the
midst of the wintry desert, as they slowly disappeared
again under the dust and clay débris. It seemed like a
true burial of figures still instinct with life. Nothing could
relieve its gloom but a vague hope for their eventual
resurrection, and the thought that if they could but take
a look at the desolation around, they might prefer to rest
again in the darkness. I could not foresee what was
written by Fate, that fifteen months later they would
again emerge to light from beneath their protective
covering—only to witness a bitter human tragedy, dark-
ness falling for ever on the eyes of my brave Naik Ram
Singh !
But for the time being it felt like a difficult task
accomplished with abundant reward, and as I rode off late
that day, guided by honest Tokhta Akhun, to rejoin my
base at Abdal, my heart was kept buoyant in the darkness
with hopes for the new field which was to open eastwards.
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