Maijishan Grotto 133

CHINA, Gansu, Tianshui

Located in the upper tier of the west cliff, this grotto, known as the Ten Thousand Buddha Grotto, is about 48 m above ground. It was excavated in the late Northern Wei dynasty (386–534) and underwent restoration in the Song dynasty (960–1279). The poet Wang Renyu from the Five Dynasties (907–960) listed this grotto as one of the Three Great Grottoes on the west cliff.
The grotto is 14.9 m in width, an average of 5.97 m in height, and 13 m in depth. It consists of one rectangular front chamber connected to two rear chambers. Throughout the grotto there are 16 niches of varying size. The largest niche is 2 m in height and the smallest is 80 cm. Over 30 large clay sculptures and six large rock carvings are housed within the grotto. Originally there were Thousand Buddha images, 8 cm to 15 cm in height, attached to the walls, but currently only 800 remain.
There are 18 steles in the grotto in addition to many rock carvings, particularly in the two rear chambers. These steles primarily depict scenes from the Life of the Buddha, illustrations of the Buddha teaching the Dharma, and images of the Thousand Buddhas. There are also a few fragments of murals on the ceiling of the front chamber that depict scenes of people riding tigers or dragons, immortals riding fishes or birds, figures holding poles or banners, and flying apsaras. A number of niches and steles contain inscriptions that provide historical information about the grottoes.