Yungang Grottoes, one of the three major cave clusters in China, punctuate the north cliff of Wuzhou Mountain, Datong. The area was excavated along the mountain, extending 1 km (0.62 miles) from east to west, revealing 53 caves and over 51,000 stone statues.
It should also be pointed out that at the time of the digging of the Yungang Grottoes proper (the sculptures and other statues stem from the period CE 520-525, i.e., towards the end of the Northern Wei Dynasty), the city of Datong was the capital of the Northern Wei Dynasty; the capital was moved to the city of Luoyang (home of the Longmen Grottoes) in CE 494.
During the reign of Emperor Xiao Wen a monk named Tanyao took charge of the construction of Yungang Grottoes. The largest cave is No.6. In the 20-meter (65.6-foot)-high cave stands a 15-meter (49.2-foot)-high pagoda-like column decorated with Buddha statues and designs. On the four sides of the tower pillar, and on the east, south and west walls of the cave, 33 embossed panels depict the story of Saykamuni.
Unfortunately, these precious grottoes have suffered severe and sustained degradation, both at the hand of nature (in the form of exposure to the elements, including driven sand) and at the hand of man, aka pollution, especially in the form of coal dust and and other industrial-produced grime which has marred the beauty of these fragile grottoes. In fact, the international community has begun to show an interest in the preservation of all of the old grottoes of China, including the Yungang Grottoes. For example, the Getty Conservation Institute has teamed up with the government of the PRC in an effort to halt the degradation of the Mogao and Yungang Grottoes, recognizing that these grottoes are part of world culture. In that regard, a word or two on the cultural signifance of the grottoes or perhaps more properly, the cultural signifance of the contents of the grottoes is in order.
Caves worth special attention are No.16, 17, 18, 19, and 20. Upon Tan Yao's suggestion, five statues of Emperors Taizu, Taizong, Shizu, The Buddha statue in Cave 20Gaozong, and Gaozu as Buddha express the religious theme that the Emperor is Buddha. Caves housing these statues are known as the Five Tan Yao Caves, similar in style but not identical. The statue in Cave 20 is martial and stately, No.19 handsome and elegant, while No.18 is dignified but lively. Their similarity lies in their thick lips, big noses, slanted eyes and broad shoulders depicting the ethnic culture of the time.
Opening Time:
8:00-18:00
How to get there:
From Datong Railway Station, take bus No. 4 to the terminus at Xinkaili (Cost: 1 yuan), then transfer to bus No. 3 (Cost: 1.5 yuan), which will deposit you at Yungang Bus Stop, from whence you can easily locate the grottoes.
Tips:
Minimum recommended time to allot to viewing the grottoes (view them once briefly, then again with more careful scrutiny, and finally, find a spot where you can take them all in, in one sweeping, panoramic view): day.