Kumtura Thousand Buddha Grottos

The Kumtura Thousand Buddha Grottos were built in 4 century. They lied in the Dinghe Hill on the east bank of Weigan River, which was 28 kilometers away for the Kuche city. The grottos were cut along the hill and they densely carved like the bees’ nest. The hill was cliffy and surrounded by reservoir and rushing river. And the scene was precipitous.

The Qing Dynasty’s scholar Xu Song reported in the “Western Region Shui Don Ji”, “There are five grottos on the top. The heights were about 3.33 meters and the depths were about 6.66 meters. The doubles of Buddha were carved on the wall: “ There were 112 grottos that had been given numbers. And there were 37 ancient Guizi characters and surviving murals. The top 5 grottos were connected by corridors and were called “5-connected Cave”. The Buddha had been destroyed and there were some carvings in Chinese and minority nationalities’ ancient characters in only one cave.

The contents of Kumtura Thousand Buddha Grottos’ murals were like the Dunhuang frescoes in the corresponding period. The differences were there were Chinese, Guizi characters and ancient Hui characters in the Frescoes; the Buddha and their posture were smooth-skinned and their look were kind. The rhombus pictures had the special style; the lines were plentiful changeable and embossed. The frescoes reflected the combination of hinterland’s art and Guizi’s art. They had high value in art.

The State Council announced it as the first-class state major cultural remains protection unit.

Translated by Beijing Star-light Translation Center
Written by www.travel-silkroad.com
December 31, 2000