Longmen Binyang Central Cave
The Longmen Caves complex is a UNESCO world heritage site located just south of the city of Luoyang, China. The Center for the Art of East Asia at University of Chicago is working in collaboration with partners at Xi'an Jiaotong University in China, and museums and institutions around the world, to create 3d digital restorations of the Binyang Central Cave at Longmen, for the purposes of preservation, study, and education.
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Rubbing of Imperial Procession with Emperor
- Title Translation: 《皇帝礼佛图》拓片
- Period: Northern Wei, Qing, Republican period, 386–534 C.E., 1910–1916 C.E.
- Project: Longmen Binyang Central Cave
- Work Description: This rubbing was taken from stone reliefs commissioned by the Northern Wei emperor Xuanwu (reigned 500–515) in honor of his deceased parents. Here the lead figure, surrounded by attendants who hold parasols and offerings, is about to place an incense stick into a censer held by an attendant in the lower right corner. The main figures in both this and its companion rubbing presumably depict the emperor’s deceased parents as lead figures. The entire procession can be understood as making offerings to the main Buddha image in the cave, as an act of gaining merit.
Rubbing of Imperial Procession with Empress
- Title Translation: 《文昭皇后礼佛图》拓片
- Period: Northern Wei, Qing, Republican period, 386–534 C.E., 1910–1916 C.E.
- Project: Longmen Binyang Central Cave
- Work Description: This rubbing was taken from stone reliefs commissioned by the Northern Wei emperor Xuanwu (reigned 500–515) in honor of his deceased parents. In this rubbing, the empress mother is in the center, crowned with an elaborate headdress and attended by an entourage of palace ladies. The empress mother is about to place an incense stick into a censer held by a lady on the left side. Other attendants carry offerings for the Buddha, such as lotus flowers, a symbol of purity in Buddhism. The second part of the imperial procession, showing the emperor with male attendants, is depicted in another rubbing in the CMA collection, 1916.64.