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| 0328 |
Ruins of Desert Cathay : vol.2 |
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then it is impossible to determine whether it was always
contemporary with the original construction. The pre-
valence in the porches of many old shrines of a style of
fresco decoration different from the manifestly older
compositions in the cellas, but closely resembling that of
the procession of large Bodhisattvas painted over the wall
which hid the entrance to the Tao-shih's chapel (see Fig.
188), led me to conclude that at some period after the
tenth century Ch'ien-fo-tung had seen another protracted
spell of prosperity. Perhaps it coincided with the reign of
the great Mongol dynasty which for a century assured
peace and flourishing trade through vast areas of Central
and Eastern Asia. But restorations must have been
frequent also at certain other periods, as suggested by the
marked variations in the character of the fresco work met
with in the antechapels and porches where the plastered
surface of the cave walls was most liable to suffer damage.
Photographs and exact ground-plans were the only
available means for keeping some record of these remark-
able shrines, and they, too, could be prepared only for
a select series among those hundreds and hundreds of
caves. Fortunately the task of selection was lightened
by the general uniformity in their architectural arrange-
ment. I have already described how the temple cella was
in each case approached by a broad porch or passage which
alone admitted light and air to the interior excavation.
The openings of these porches are clearly seen in Figs.
159, 199. Outside them the larger shrines have ordinarily
antechapels, of the same width as the cellas but much
narrower and often verandah-like, closed by wooden
construction in front. In the upper stories communication
between the adjoining shrines was once maintained chiefly
by passages opening from one antechapel into the other.
Within the cella, which usually is a little deeper than
wide—e.g. that of Wang Tao-shih's temple measures fifty-
four by forty-six feet—the larger shrines have generally a
horseshoe-shaped platform facing the porch and elaborately
decorated. Its centre is occupied by a colossal stucco image
of Buddha, at the back of which a kind of screen and
canopy combined has been spared from the rock and
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723
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736
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749
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771
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783
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793
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803
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813
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