Database of Silk Road Ruins

莫高窟は敦煌の町の東南約20キロに位置し、断崖に約1600メートルにわたって大小約490の窟龕が開かれる。造営は五世紀前半の北涼時代から元代に至るまで続けられた。塑像は合計2415体、壁画は合計で約45000㎡にも達する。1900年に蔵経洞が発見され、敦煌文書とともに莫高窟の仏教美術は重要な歴史史料となっている。 / The Mogao Grottoes are located about 20 kilometers southeast of the city of Dunhuang. There are some 490 grottoes over a stretch of 1,600 meters on the cliffs there. The construction began in the early 5th century during the Northern Liang Dynasty period and continued into the Yuan Dynasty era. The site houses a total of 2,415 statutes and the area covered by murals extends over 45,000 square meters. Among the numerous grottoes, the Zangjing(dong) cave found in 1900 is of particular importance. The Buddhist art in the Mogao Grottoes as well as the Dunhuang documents is ranked among the most significance historical material in China.