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Why the
Yungang Caves
are special
Yungang Caves are China's
greatest single venue of Buddhist statues. They were carved 1500 years ago.
Interesting insights
about the Yungang Caves
 Yungang Caves
consist of 53 caves and
51,000 statues depicting Buddha and his life.
The
height of the statues ranges in extremes from thumb size to 17 meters (55 feet).
Most
of the significant caves were carved out in the
5th century. Then, the serious carving was suddenly ceased
as the realm moved its imperial seat to a distant city.
Few of the statues are free standing. Most were
carved directly into the cave walls (the hollows created niches for the statues).
The grottoes and statues were
physically easy to carve out because
sandstone rock is a relatively soft stone, a sculptor's dream.
Yungang Caves tidbits
The cave complex and statuary were
created by 40,000 workers.
Once, thousands of Buddhist monks
lived within the Yungang Caves complex.
Tips for your
vacation tour or trip
Be sure to reserve ample time for these caves:
Cave 5 - Extensively carved. This is the artistic glory of the Yungang caves.
Cave 6 - Boasts a seated
Buddha of giant proportions.
Cave 11 - Notable for its thousands
of Buddhist carvings on the walls and ceilings.
Cave 18 - The home of a tall Buddha statue.
Cave 20 - Houses the giant seated Buddha shown in the above
photo. It is bathed in sun light because its wall collapsed,
exposing the statue to the outdoors.
Nearest major city
The Yungang Caves lie 16 kilometers (10 miles) west of Datong in Shanxi province. See map below for general location of that province.
Pronunciation guide
Yungang: yoo'ng-gahng
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