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Longmen Binyang Central Cave, One of the guardian kings in the lower section of the north side of the East Wall of Cave 140
  • Title Translation: 龙门宾阳中洞 , 第140窟东壁北侧下段神王之一
  • Period: Northern Wei, 386–534 C.E.
  • Project: Longmen Binyang Central Cave
  • Work Description: The Longmen Caves are located outside the city of Luoyang, China, about 500 miles southeast of the modern-day capital in Beijing. Established in the late fifth century, the site consists of 2,345 caves, and over 100,000 individual Buddhist statues, ranging in height from a few inches to over 56 feet. For more than 250 years, Chinese Buddhists from all walks of life sponsored the addition of Buddhist statues and inscriptions to the site, most significantly from the late Northern Wei (386-534) through the Tang dynasty (618-907). Binyang Central Cave is one of the earliest at Longmen and a major monument of Chinese Buddhism. Begun around the year 501, it was commissioned by the youthful Emperor Xuanwu (483-515) and dedicated to his father, Emperor Xiaowen, who died in 499 at age thirty-three. The cave is one of the major monuments of Chinese Buddhism. MEasuring roughly 30 feet in each dimension, its principal image is 28-foot-high seated Buddha largly filling the back of the cave and accompanied by smaller standing figures—disciples, Buddhas, and bodhisattva—on either side. The exit wall contained some of the finest stone relief carvings of the era, including depictions of two imperial processions, and a number of stories from Buddhist scriptures. After cave-making was discontinued for nearly a thousand years, the Longmen site was "discovered" by foreign scholars in the late 1800s. The publication of their studies with photos attracted international attention to the artistic quality of the sculptures. The publications ultimately led to the looting of much of the site in the early part of the twentieth century. In response to demand from art dealers, collectors, and museums around the globe, local stonecutters removed countless works from the caves, often breaking them into numerous fragments in the process. Pieces from the greater Longmen complex can now be found scattered throughout the world. In Binyang Central Cave, several heads and large portions of the relief carvings were cut or burned out of the walls. Fragments from Binyang Central Cave now reside in museums in the US and Japan, as well as in storage at the Longmen Research Institute in China. Many shattered pieces are identifiable today with the evidence of historical photographs and rubbings taken of the reliefs before their removal.
386 - 534

Fengxian Temple (Fengxiansi), Vairocana Buddha
  • Title Translation: 奉先寺 , 毗卢遮那佛
  • Period: Tang, 618–907 C.E.
  • Project: Sculptures in Longmen Caves
  • Work Description: This imposing group of nine monumental images carved into the hard, gray limestone of Fengxian Temple at Longmen is a spectacular display of innovative style and iconography. Sponsored by the Emperor Gaozong and his wife, the future Empress Wu, the high relief sculptures are widely spaced in a semi-circle. The central Vairocana Buddha (more than 55 feet high including its pedestal) is flanked on either side by a bodhisattva, a heavenly king, and a thunderbolt holder (vajrapani). Vairocana represents the primordial Buddha who generates and presides over all the Buddhas of the infinite universes that form Buddhist cosmology. This idea—of the power of one supreme deity over all the others—resonated in the vast Tang Empire which was dominated by the Emperor at its summit and supported by his subordinate officials. These monumental sculptures intentionally mirrored the political situation. The dignity and imposing presence of Buddha and the sumptuous appearance of his attendant bodhisattvas is significant in this context. The Buddha, monks and bodhisattvas (above) display new softer and rounder modeling and serene facial expressions. In contrast, the heavenly guardians and the vajrapani are more engaging and animated. Notice the realistic musculature of the heavenly guardians and the forceful poses of the vajrapani.
618 - 907

Fengxian Temple (Fengxiansi)
  • Title Translation: 奉先寺
  • Period: Tang, 618–907 C.E.
  • Project: Sculptures in Longmen Caves
  • Work Description: This imposing group of nine monumental images carved into the hard, gray limestone of Fengxian Temple at Longmen is a spectacular display of innovative style and iconography. Sponsored by the Emperor Gaozong and his wife, the future Empress Wu, the high relief sculptures are widely spaced in a semi-circle. The central Vairocana Buddha (more than 55 feet high including its pedestal) is flanked on either side by a bodhisattva, a heavenly king, and a thunderbolt holder (vajrapani). Vairocana represents the primordial Buddha who generates and presides over all the Buddhas of the infinite universes that form Buddhist cosmology. This idea—of the power of one supreme deity over all the others—resonated in the vast Tang Empire which was dominated by the Emperor at its summit and supported by his subordinate officials. These monumental sculptures intentionally mirrored the political situation. The dignity and imposing presence of Buddha and the sumptuous appearance of his attendant bodhisattvas is significant in this context. The Buddha, monks and bodhisattvas (above) display new softer and rounder modeling and serene facial expressions. In contrast, the heavenly guardians and the vajrapani are more engaging and animated. Notice the realistic musculature of the heavenly guardians and the forceful poses of the vajrapani.
618 - 907

Fengxian Temple (Fengxiansi)
  • Title Translation: 奉先寺
  • Period: Tang, 618–907 C.E.
  • Project: Sculptures in Longmen Caves
  • Work Description: This imposing group of nine monumental images carved into the hard, gray limestone of Fengxian Temple at Longmen is a spectacular display of innovative style and iconography. Sponsored by the Emperor Gaozong and his wife, the future Empress Wu, the high relief sculptures are widely spaced in a semi-circle. The central Vairocana Buddha (more than 55 feet high including its pedestal) is flanked on either side by a bodhisattva, a heavenly king, and a thunderbolt holder (vajrapani). Vairocana represents the primordial Buddha who generates and presides over all the Buddhas of the infinite universes that form Buddhist cosmology. This idea—of the power of one supreme deity over all the others—resonated in the vast Tang Empire which was dominated by the Emperor at its summit and supported by his subordinate officials. These monumental sculptures intentionally mirrored the political situation. The dignity and imposing presence of Buddha and the sumptuous appearance of his attendant bodhisattvas is significant in this context. The Buddha, monks and bodhisattvas (above) display new softer and rounder modeling and serene facial expressions. In contrast, the heavenly guardians and the vajrapani are more engaging and animated. Notice the realistic musculature of the heavenly guardians and the forceful poses of the vajrapani.
618 - 907

Fengxian Temple (Fengxiansi)
  • Title Translation: 奉先寺
  • Period: Tang, 618–907 C.E.
  • Project: Sculptures in Longmen Caves
  • Work Description: This imposing group of nine monumental images carved into the hard, gray limestone of Fengxian Temple at Longmen is a spectacular display of innovative style and iconography. Sponsored by the Emperor Gaozong and his wife, the future Empress Wu, the high relief sculptures are widely spaced in a semi-circle. The central Vairocana Buddha (more than 55 feet high including its pedestal) is flanked on either side by a bodhisattva, a heavenly king, and a thunderbolt holder (vajrapani). Vairocana represents the primordial Buddha who generates and presides over all the Buddhas of the infinite universes that form Buddhist cosmology. This idea—of the power of one supreme deity over all the others—resonated in the vast Tang Empire which was dominated by the Emperor at its summit and supported by his subordinate officials. These monumental sculptures intentionally mirrored the political situation. The dignity and imposing presence of Buddha and the sumptuous appearance of his attendant bodhisattvas is significant in this context. The Buddha, monks and bodhisattvas (above) display new softer and rounder modeling and serene facial expressions. In contrast, the heavenly guardians and the vajrapani are more engaging and animated. Notice the realistic musculature of the heavenly guardians and the forceful poses of the vajrapani.
618 - 907

Fengxian Temple (Fengxiansi)
  • Title Translation: 奉先寺
  • Period: Tang, 618–907 C.E.
  • Project: Sculptures in Longmen Caves
  • Work Description: This imposing group of nine monumental images carved into the hard, gray limestone of Fengxian Temple at Longmen is a spectacular display of innovative style and iconography. Sponsored by the Emperor Gaozong and his wife, the future Empress Wu, the high relief sculptures are widely spaced in a semi-circle. The central Vairocana Buddha (more than 55 feet high including its pedestal) is flanked on either side by a bodhisattva, a heavenly king, and a thunderbolt holder (vajrapani). Vairocana represents the primordial Buddha who generates and presides over all the Buddhas of the infinite universes that form Buddhist cosmology. This idea—of the power of one supreme deity over all the others—resonated in the vast Tang Empire which was dominated by the Emperor at its summit and supported by his subordinate officials. These monumental sculptures intentionally mirrored the political situation. The dignity and imposing presence of Buddha and the sumptuous appearance of his attendant bodhisattvas is significant in this context. The Buddha, monks and bodhisattvas (above) display new softer and rounder modeling and serene facial expressions. In contrast, the heavenly guardians and the vajrapani are more engaging and animated. Notice the realistic musculature of the heavenly guardians and the forceful poses of the vajrapani.
618 - 907

Fengxian Temple (Fengxiansi), Vajrapāṇi
  • Title Translation: 奉先寺 , 金刚手菩萨
  • Period: Tang, 618–907 C.E.
  • Project: Sculptures in Longmen Caves
  • Work Description: This imposing group of nine monumental images carved into the hard, gray limestone of Fengxian Temple at Longmen is a spectacular display of innovative style and iconography. Sponsored by the Emperor Gaozong and his wife, the future Empress Wu, the high relief sculptures are widely spaced in a semi-circle. The central Vairocana Buddha (more than 55 feet high including its pedestal) is flanked on either side by a bodhisattva, a heavenly king, and a thunderbolt holder (vajrapani). Vairocana represents the primordial Buddha who generates and presides over all the Buddhas of the infinite universes that form Buddhist cosmology. This idea—of the power of one supreme deity over all the others—resonated in the vast Tang Empire which was dominated by the Emperor at its summit and supported by his subordinate officials. These monumental sculptures intentionally mirrored the political situation. The dignity and imposing presence of Buddha and the sumptuous appearance of his attendant bodhisattvas is significant in this context. The Buddha, monks and bodhisattvas (above) display new softer and rounder modeling and serene facial expressions. In contrast, the heavenly guardians and the vajrapani are more engaging and animated. Notice the realistic musculature of the heavenly guardians and the forceful poses of the vajrapani.
618 - 907

Fengxian Temple (Fengxiansi)
  • Title Translation: 奉先寺
  • Period: Tang, 618–907 C.E.
  • Project: Sculptures in Longmen Caves
  • Work Description: This imposing group of nine monumental images carved into the hard, gray limestone of Fengxian Temple at Longmen is a spectacular display of innovative style and iconography. Sponsored by the Emperor Gaozong and his wife, the future Empress Wu, the high relief sculptures are widely spaced in a semi-circle. The central Vairocana Buddha (more than 55 feet high including its pedestal) is flanked on either side by a bodhisattva, a heavenly king, and a thunderbolt holder (vajrapani). Vairocana represents the primordial Buddha who generates and presides over all the Buddhas of the infinite universes that form Buddhist cosmology. This idea—of the power of one supreme deity over all the others—resonated in the vast Tang Empire which was dominated by the Emperor at its summit and supported by his subordinate officials. These monumental sculptures intentionally mirrored the political situation. The dignity and imposing presence of Buddha and the sumptuous appearance of his attendant bodhisattvas is significant in this context. The Buddha, monks and bodhisattvas (above) display new softer and rounder modeling and serene facial expressions. In contrast, the heavenly guardians and the vajrapani are more engaging and animated. Notice the realistic musculature of the heavenly guardians and the forceful poses of the vajrapani.
618 - 907

Fengxian Temple (Fengxiansi)
  • Title Translation: 奉先寺
  • Period: Tang, 618–907 C.E.
  • Project: Sculptures in Longmen Caves
  • Work Description: This imposing group of nine monumental images carved into the hard, gray limestone of Fengxian Temple at Longmen is a spectacular display of innovative style and iconography. Sponsored by the Emperor Gaozong and his wife, the future Empress Wu, the high relief sculptures are widely spaced in a semi-circle. The central Vairocana Buddha (more than 55 feet high including its pedestal) is flanked on either side by a bodhisattva, a heavenly king, and a thunderbolt holder (vajrapani). Vairocana represents the primordial Buddha who generates and presides over all the Buddhas of the infinite universes that form Buddhist cosmology. This idea—of the power of one supreme deity over all the others—resonated in the vast Tang Empire which was dominated by the Emperor at its summit and supported by his subordinate officials. These monumental sculptures intentionally mirrored the political situation. The dignity and imposing presence of Buddha and the sumptuous appearance of his attendant bodhisattvas is significant in this context. The Buddha, monks and bodhisattvas (above) display new softer and rounder modeling and serene facial expressions. In contrast, the heavenly guardians and the vajrapani are more engaging and animated. Notice the realistic musculature of the heavenly guardians and the forceful poses of the vajrapani.
618 - 907

Longmen Binyang Central Cave, central Buddha, detail
  • Title Translation: 龙门宾阳中洞 , 中央佛像，细节
  • Period: Northern Wei, 386–534 C.E.
  • Project: Longmen Binyang Central Cave
  • Work Description: The Longmen Caves are located outside the city of Luoyang, China, about 500 miles southeast of the modern-day capital in Beijing. Established in the late fifth century, the site consists of 2,345 caves, and over 100,000 individual Buddhist statues, ranging in height from a few inches to over 56 feet. For more than 250 years, Chinese Buddhists from all walks of life sponsored the addition of Buddhist statues and inscriptions to the site, most significantly from the late Northern Wei (386-534) through the Tang dynasty (618-907). Binyang Central Cave is one of the earliest at Longmen and a major monument of Chinese Buddhism. Begun around the year 501, it was commissioned by the youthful Emperor Xuanwu (483-515) and dedicated to his father, Emperor Xiaowen, who died in 499 at age thirty-three. The cave is one of the major monuments of Chinese Buddhism. MEasuring roughly 30 feet in each dimension, its principal image is 28-foot-high seated Buddha largly filling the back of the cave and accompanied by smaller standing figures—disciples, Buddhas, and bodhisattva—on either side. The exit wall contained some of the finest stone relief carvings of the era, including depictions of two imperial processions, and a number of stories from Buddhist scriptures. After cave-making was discontinued for nearly a thousand years, the Longmen site was "discovered" by foreign scholars in the late 1800s. The publication of their studies with photos attracted international attention to the artistic quality of the sculptures. The publications ultimately led to the looting of much of the site in the early part of the twentieth century. In response to demand from art dealers, collectors, and museums around the globe, local stonecutters removed countless works from the caves, often breaking them into numerous fragments in the process. Pieces from the greater Longmen complex can now be found scattered throughout the world. In Binyang Central Cave, several heads and large portions of the relief carvings were cut or burned out of the walls. Fragments from Binyang Central Cave now reside in museums in the US and Japan, as well as in storage at the Longmen Research Institute in China. Many shattered pieces are identifiable today with the evidence of historical photographs and rubbings taken of the reliefs before their removal.
386 - 534

Longmen Binyang Central Cave, entrance north side upper portion
  • Title Translation: 龙门宾阳中洞 , 入口北侧上部
  • Period: Northern Wei, 386–534 C.E.
  • Project: Longmen Binyang Central Cave
  • Work Description: The Longmen Caves are located outside the city of Luoyang, China, about 500 miles southeast of the modern-day capital in Beijing. Established in the late fifth century, the site consists of 2,345 caves, and over 100,000 individual Buddhist statues, ranging in height from a few inches to over 56 feet. For more than 250 years, Chinese Buddhists from all walks of life sponsored the addition of Buddhist statues and inscriptions to the site, most significantly from the late Northern Wei (386-534) through the Tang dynasty (618-907). Binyang Central Cave is one of the earliest at Longmen and a major monument of Chinese Buddhism. Begun around the year 501, it was commissioned by the youthful Emperor Xuanwu (483-515) and dedicated to his father, Emperor Xiaowen, who died in 499 at age thirty-three. The cave is one of the major monuments of Chinese Buddhism. MEasuring roughly 30 feet in each dimension, its principal image is 28-foot-high seated Buddha largly filling the back of the cave and accompanied by smaller standing figures—disciples, Buddhas, and bodhisattva—on either side. The exit wall contained some of the finest stone relief carvings of the era, including depictions of two imperial processions, and a number of stories from Buddhist scriptures. After cave-making was discontinued for nearly a thousand years, the Longmen site was "discovered" by foreign scholars in the late 1800s. The publication of their studies with photos attracted international attention to the artistic quality of the sculptures. The publications ultimately led to the looting of much of the site in the early part of the twentieth century. In response to demand from art dealers, collectors, and museums around the globe, local stonecutters removed countless works from the caves, often breaking them into numerous fragments in the process. Pieces from the greater Longmen complex can now be found scattered throughout the world. In Binyang Central Cave, several heads and large portions of the relief carvings were cut or burned out of the walls. Fragments from Binyang Central Cave now reside in museums in the US and Japan, as well as in storage at the Longmen Research Institute in China. Many shattered pieces are identifiable today with the evidence of historical photographs and rubbings taken of the reliefs before their removal.
386 - 534

Longmen Binyang Central Cave, northeast corner, detail
  • Title Translation: 龙门宾阳中洞 , 东北角，细节
  • Period: Northern Wei, 386–534 C.E.
  • Project: Longmen Binyang Central Cave
  • Work Description: The Longmen Caves are located outside the city of Luoyang, China, about 500 miles southeast of the modern-day capital in Beijing. Established in the late fifth century, the site consists of 2,345 caves, and over 100,000 individual Buddhist statues, ranging in height from a few inches to over 56 feet. For more than 250 years, Chinese Buddhists from all walks of life sponsored the addition of Buddhist statues and inscriptions to the site, most significantly from the late Northern Wei (386-534) through the Tang dynasty (618-907). Binyang Central Cave is one of the earliest at Longmen and a major monument of Chinese Buddhism. Begun around the year 501, it was commissioned by the youthful Emperor Xuanwu (483-515) and dedicated to his father, Emperor Xiaowen, who died in 499 at age thirty-three. The cave is one of the major monuments of Chinese Buddhism. MEasuring roughly 30 feet in each dimension, its principal image is 28-foot-high seated Buddha largly filling the back of the cave and accompanied by smaller standing figures—disciples, Buddhas, and bodhisattva—on either side. The exit wall contained some of the finest stone relief carvings of the era, including depictions of two imperial processions, and a number of stories from Buddhist scriptures. After cave-making was discontinued for nearly a thousand years, the Longmen site was "discovered" by foreign scholars in the late 1800s. The publication of their studies with photos attracted international attention to the artistic quality of the sculptures. The publications ultimately led to the looting of much of the site in the early part of the twentieth century. In response to demand from art dealers, collectors, and museums around the globe, local stonecutters removed countless works from the caves, often breaking them into numerous fragments in the process. Pieces from the greater Longmen complex can now be found scattered throughout the world. In Binyang Central Cave, several heads and large portions of the relief carvings were cut or burned out of the walls. Fragments from Binyang Central Cave now reside in museums in the US and Japan, as well as in storage at the Longmen Research Institute in China. Many shattered pieces are identifiable today with the evidence of historical photographs and rubbings taken of the reliefs before their removal.
386 - 534

Longmen Binyang Central Cave, northeast corner, detail
  • Title Translation: 龙门宾阳中洞 , 东北角，细节
  • Period: Northern Wei, 386–534 C.E.
  • Project: Longmen Binyang Central Cave
  • Work Description: The Longmen Caves are located outside the city of Luoyang, China, about 500 miles southeast of the modern-day capital in Beijing. Established in the late fifth century, the site consists of 2,345 caves, and over 100,000 individual Buddhist statues, ranging in height from a few inches to over 56 feet. For more than 250 years, Chinese Buddhists from all walks of life sponsored the addition of Buddhist statues and inscriptions to the site, most significantly from the late Northern Wei (386-534) through the Tang dynasty (618-907). Binyang Central Cave is one of the earliest at Longmen and a major monument of Chinese Buddhism. Begun around the year 501, it was commissioned by the youthful Emperor Xuanwu (483-515) and dedicated to his father, Emperor Xiaowen, who died in 499 at age thirty-three. The cave is one of the major monuments of Chinese Buddhism. MEasuring roughly 30 feet in each dimension, its principal image is 28-foot-high seated Buddha largly filling the back of the cave and accompanied by smaller standing figures—disciples, Buddhas, and bodhisattva—on either side. The exit wall contained some of the finest stone relief carvings of the era, including depictions of two imperial processions, and a number of stories from Buddhist scriptures. After cave-making was discontinued for nearly a thousand years, the Longmen site was "discovered" by foreign scholars in the late 1800s. The publication of their studies with photos attracted international attention to the artistic quality of the sculptures. The publications ultimately led to the looting of much of the site in the early part of the twentieth century. In response to demand from art dealers, collectors, and museums around the globe, local stonecutters removed countless works from the caves, often breaking them into numerous fragments in the process. Pieces from the greater Longmen complex can now be found scattered throughout the world. In Binyang Central Cave, several heads and large portions of the relief carvings were cut or burned out of the walls. Fragments from Binyang Central Cave now reside in museums in the US and Japan, as well as in storage at the Longmen Research Institute in China. Many shattered pieces are identifiable today with the evidence of historical photographs and rubbings taken of the reliefs before their removal.
386 - 534

Longmen Binyang Central Cave, entrance north side
  • Title Translation: 龙门宾阳中洞 , 入口北侧
  • Period: Northern Wei, 386–534 C.E.
  • Project: Longmen Binyang Central Cave
  • Work Description: The Longmen Caves are located outside the city of Luoyang, China, about 500 miles southeast of the modern-day capital in Beijing. Established in the late fifth century, the site consists of 2,345 caves, and over 100,000 individual Buddhist statues, ranging in height from a few inches to over 56 feet. For more than 250 years, Chinese Buddhists from all walks of life sponsored the addition of Buddhist statues and inscriptions to the site, most significantly from the late Northern Wei (386-534) through the Tang dynasty (618-907). Binyang Central Cave is one of the earliest at Longmen and a major monument of Chinese Buddhism. Begun around the year 501, it was commissioned by the youthful Emperor Xuanwu (483-515) and dedicated to his father, Emperor Xiaowen, who died in 499 at age thirty-three. The cave is one of the major monuments of Chinese Buddhism. MEasuring roughly 30 feet in each dimension, its principal image is 28-foot-high seated Buddha largly filling the back of the cave and accompanied by smaller standing figures—disciples, Buddhas, and bodhisattva—on either side. The exit wall contained some of the finest stone relief carvings of the era, including depictions of two imperial processions, and a number of stories from Buddhist scriptures. After cave-making was discontinued for nearly a thousand years, the Longmen site was "discovered" by foreign scholars in the late 1800s. The publication of their studies with photos attracted international attention to the artistic quality of the sculptures. The publications ultimately led to the looting of much of the site in the early part of the twentieth century. In response to demand from art dealers, collectors, and museums around the globe, local stonecutters removed countless works from the caves, often breaking them into numerous fragments in the process. Pieces from the greater Longmen complex can now be found scattered throughout the world. In Binyang Central Cave, several heads and large portions of the relief carvings were cut or burned out of the walls. Fragments from Binyang Central Cave now reside in museums in the US and Japan, as well as in storage at the Longmen Research Institute in China. Many shattered pieces are identifiable today with the evidence of historical photographs and rubbings taken of the reliefs before their removal.
386 - 534

Longmen Binyang Central Cave, south wall
  • Title Translation: 龙门宾阳中洞 , 南壁
  • Period: Northern Wei, 386–534 C.E.
  • Project: Longmen Binyang Central Cave
  • Work Description: The Longmen Caves are located outside the city of Luoyang, China, about 500 miles southeast of the modern-day capital in Beijing. Established in the late fifth century, the site consists of 2,345 caves, and over 100,000 individual Buddhist statues, ranging in height from a few inches to over 56 feet. For more than 250 years, Chinese Buddhists from all walks of life sponsored the addition of Buddhist statues and inscriptions to the site, most significantly from the late Northern Wei (386-534) through the Tang dynasty (618-907). Binyang Central Cave is one of the earliest at Longmen and a major monument of Chinese Buddhism. Begun around the year 501, it was commissioned by the youthful Emperor Xuanwu (483-515) and dedicated to his father, Emperor Xiaowen, who died in 499 at age thirty-three. The cave is one of the major monuments of Chinese Buddhism. MEasuring roughly 30 feet in each dimension, its principal image is 28-foot-high seated Buddha largly filling the back of the cave and accompanied by smaller standing figures—disciples, Buddhas, and bodhisattva—on either side. The exit wall contained some of the finest stone relief carvings of the era, including depictions of two imperial processions, and a number of stories from Buddhist scriptures. After cave-making was discontinued for nearly a thousand years, the Longmen site was "discovered" by foreign scholars in the late 1800s. The publication of their studies with photos attracted international attention to the artistic quality of the sculptures. The publications ultimately led to the looting of much of the site in the early part of the twentieth century. In response to demand from art dealers, collectors, and museums around the globe, local stonecutters removed countless works from the caves, often breaking them into numerous fragments in the process. Pieces from the greater Longmen complex can now be found scattered throughout the world. In Binyang Central Cave, several heads and large portions of the relief carvings were cut or burned out of the walls. Fragments from Binyang Central Cave now reside in museums in the US and Japan, as well as in storage at the Longmen Research Institute in China. Many shattered pieces are identifiable today with the evidence of historical photographs and rubbings taken of the reliefs before their removal.
386 - 534

Longmen Binyang Central Cave, entrance
  • Title Translation: 龙门宾阳中洞 , 入口
  • Period: Northern Wei, 386–534 C.E.
  • Project: Longmen Binyang Central Cave
  • Work Description: The Longmen Caves are located outside the city of Luoyang, China, about 500 miles southeast of the modern-day capital in Beijing. Established in the late fifth century, the site consists of 2,345 caves, and over 100,000 individual Buddhist statues, ranging in height from a few inches to over 56 feet. For more than 250 years, Chinese Buddhists from all walks of life sponsored the addition of Buddhist statues and inscriptions to the site, most significantly from the late Northern Wei (386-534) through the Tang dynasty (618-907). Binyang Central Cave is one of the earliest at Longmen and a major monument of Chinese Buddhism. Begun around the year 501, it was commissioned by the youthful Emperor Xuanwu (483-515) and dedicated to his father, Emperor Xiaowen, who died in 499 at age thirty-three. The cave is one of the major monuments of Chinese Buddhism. MEasuring roughly 30 feet in each dimension, its principal image is 28-foot-high seated Buddha largly filling the back of the cave and accompanied by smaller standing figures—disciples, Buddhas, and bodhisattva—on either side. The exit wall contained some of the finest stone relief carvings of the era, including depictions of two imperial processions, and a number of stories from Buddhist scriptures. After cave-making was discontinued for nearly a thousand years, the Longmen site was "discovered" by foreign scholars in the late 1800s. The publication of their studies with photos attracted international attention to the artistic quality of the sculptures. The publications ultimately led to the looting of much of the site in the early part of the twentieth century. In response to demand from art dealers, collectors, and museums around the globe, local stonecutters removed countless works from the caves, often breaking them into numerous fragments in the process. Pieces from the greater Longmen complex can now be found scattered throughout the world. In Binyang Central Cave, several heads and large portions of the relief carvings were cut or burned out of the walls. Fragments from Binyang Central Cave now reside in museums in the US and Japan, as well as in storage at the Longmen Research Institute in China. Many shattered pieces are identifiable today with the evidence of historical photographs and rubbings taken of the reliefs before their removal.
386 - 534

Longmen Binyang Central Cave, entrance south side
  • Title Translation: 龙门宾阳中洞 , 入口南侧
  • Period: Northern Wei, 386–534 C.E.
  • Project: Longmen Binyang Central Cave
  • Work Description: The Longmen Caves are located outside the city of Luoyang, China, about 500 miles southeast of the modern-day capital in Beijing. Established in the late fifth century, the site consists of 2,345 caves, and over 100,000 individual Buddhist statues, ranging in height from a few inches to over 56 feet. For more than 250 years, Chinese Buddhists from all walks of life sponsored the addition of Buddhist statues and inscriptions to the site, most significantly from the late Northern Wei (386-534) through the Tang dynasty (618-907). Binyang Central Cave is one of the earliest at Longmen and a major monument of Chinese Buddhism. Begun around the year 501, it was commissioned by the youthful Emperor Xuanwu (483-515) and dedicated to his father, Emperor Xiaowen, who died in 499 at age thirty-three. The cave is one of the major monuments of Chinese Buddhism. MEasuring roughly 30 feet in each dimension, its principal image is 28-foot-high seated Buddha largly filling the back of the cave and accompanied by smaller standing figures—disciples, Buddhas, and bodhisattva—on either side. The exit wall contained some of the finest stone relief carvings of the era, including depictions of two imperial processions, and a number of stories from Buddhist scriptures. After cave-making was discontinued for nearly a thousand years, the Longmen site was "discovered" by foreign scholars in the late 1800s. The publication of their studies with photos attracted international attention to the artistic quality of the sculptures. The publications ultimately led to the looting of much of the site in the early part of the twentieth century. In response to demand from art dealers, collectors, and museums around the globe, local stonecutters removed countless works from the caves, often breaking them into numerous fragments in the process. Pieces from the greater Longmen complex can now be found scattered throughout the world. In Binyang Central Cave, several heads and large portions of the relief carvings were cut or burned out of the walls. Fragments from Binyang Central Cave now reside in museums in the US and Japan, as well as in storage at the Longmen Research Institute in China. Many shattered pieces are identifiable today with the evidence of historical photographs and rubbings taken of the reliefs before their removal.
386 - 534

Longmen Binyang Central Cave, northeast corner
  • Title Translation: 龙门宾阳中洞 , 东北角
  • Period: Northern Wei, 386–534 C.E.
  • Project: Longmen Binyang Central Cave
  • Work Description: The Longmen Caves are located outside the city of Luoyang, China, about 500 miles southeast of the modern-day capital in Beijing. Established in the late fifth century, the site consists of 2,345 caves, and over 100,000 individual Buddhist statues, ranging in height from a few inches to over 56 feet. For more than 250 years, Chinese Buddhists from all walks of life sponsored the addition of Buddhist statues and inscriptions to the site, most significantly from the late Northern Wei (386-534) through the Tang dynasty (618-907). Binyang Central Cave is one of the earliest at Longmen and a major monument of Chinese Buddhism. Begun around the year 501, it was commissioned by the youthful Emperor Xuanwu (483-515) and dedicated to his father, Emperor Xiaowen, who died in 499 at age thirty-three. The cave is one of the major monuments of Chinese Buddhism. MEasuring roughly 30 feet in each dimension, its principal image is 28-foot-high seated Buddha largly filling the back of the cave and accompanied by smaller standing figures—disciples, Buddhas, and bodhisattva—on either side. The exit wall contained some of the finest stone relief carvings of the era, including depictions of two imperial processions, and a number of stories from Buddhist scriptures. After cave-making was discontinued for nearly a thousand years, the Longmen site was "discovered" by foreign scholars in the late 1800s. The publication of their studies with photos attracted international attention to the artistic quality of the sculptures. The publications ultimately led to the looting of much of the site in the early part of the twentieth century. In response to demand from art dealers, collectors, and museums around the globe, local stonecutters removed countless works from the caves, often breaking them into numerous fragments in the process. Pieces from the greater Longmen complex can now be found scattered throughout the world. In Binyang Central Cave, several heads and large portions of the relief carvings were cut or burned out of the walls. Fragments from Binyang Central Cave now reside in museums in the US and Japan, as well as in storage at the Longmen Research Institute in China. Many shattered pieces are identifiable today with the evidence of historical photographs and rubbings taken of the reliefs before their removal.
386 - 534

Longmen Binyang Central Cave, south wall
  • Title Translation: 龙门宾阳中洞 , 南壁
  • Period: Northern Wei, 386–534 C.E.
  • Project: Longmen Binyang Central Cave
  • Work Description: The Longmen Caves are located outside the city of Luoyang, China, about 500 miles southeast of the modern-day capital in Beijing. Established in the late fifth century, the site consists of 2,345 caves, and over 100,000 individual Buddhist statues, ranging in height from a few inches to over 56 feet. For more than 250 years, Chinese Buddhists from all walks of life sponsored the addition of Buddhist statues and inscriptions to the site, most significantly from the late Northern Wei (386-534) through the Tang dynasty (618-907). Binyang Central Cave is one of the earliest at Longmen and a major monument of Chinese Buddhism. Begun around the year 501, it was commissioned by the youthful Emperor Xuanwu (483-515) and dedicated to his father, Emperor Xiaowen, who died in 499 at age thirty-three. The cave is one of the major monuments of Chinese Buddhism. MEasuring roughly 30 feet in each dimension, its principal image is 28-foot-high seated Buddha largly filling the back of the cave and accompanied by smaller standing figures—disciples, Buddhas, and bodhisattva—on either side. The exit wall contained some of the finest stone relief carvings of the era, including depictions of two imperial processions, and a number of stories from Buddhist scriptures. After cave-making was discontinued for nearly a thousand years, the Longmen site was "discovered" by foreign scholars in the late 1800s. The publication of their studies with photos attracted international attention to the artistic quality of the sculptures. The publications ultimately led to the looting of much of the site in the early part of the twentieth century. In response to demand from art dealers, collectors, and museums around the globe, local stonecutters removed countless works from the caves, often breaking them into numerous fragments in the process. Pieces from the greater Longmen complex can now be found scattered throughout the world. In Binyang Central Cave, several heads and large portions of the relief carvings were cut or burned out of the walls. Fragments from Binyang Central Cave now reside in museums in the US and Japan, as well as in storage at the Longmen Research Institute in China. Many shattered pieces are identifiable today with the evidence of historical photographs and rubbings taken of the reliefs before their removal.
386 - 534

Longmen Binyang Central Cave, entrance south side
  • Title Translation: 龙门宾阳中洞 , 入口南侧
  • Period: Northern Wei, 386–534 C.E.
  • Project: Longmen Binyang Central Cave
  • Work Description: The Longmen Caves are located outside the city of Luoyang, China, about 500 miles southeast of the modern-day capital in Beijing. Established in the late fifth century, the site consists of 2,345 caves, and over 100,000 individual Buddhist statues, ranging in height from a few inches to over 56 feet. For more than 250 years, Chinese Buddhists from all walks of life sponsored the addition of Buddhist statues and inscriptions to the site, most significantly from the late Northern Wei (386-534) through the Tang dynasty (618-907). Binyang Central Cave is one of the earliest at Longmen and a major monument of Chinese Buddhism. Begun around the year 501, it was commissioned by the youthful Emperor Xuanwu (483-515) and dedicated to his father, Emperor Xiaowen, who died in 499 at age thirty-three. The cave is one of the major monuments of Chinese Buddhism. MEasuring roughly 30 feet in each dimension, its principal image is 28-foot-high seated Buddha largly filling the back of the cave and accompanied by smaller standing figures—disciples, Buddhas, and bodhisattva—on either side. The exit wall contained some of the finest stone relief carvings of the era, including depictions of two imperial processions, and a number of stories from Buddhist scriptures. After cave-making was discontinued for nearly a thousand years, the Longmen site was "discovered" by foreign scholars in the late 1800s. The publication of their studies with photos attracted international attention to the artistic quality of the sculptures. The publications ultimately led to the looting of much of the site in the early part of the twentieth century. In response to demand from art dealers, collectors, and museums around the globe, local stonecutters removed countless works from the caves, often breaking them into numerous fragments in the process. Pieces from the greater Longmen complex can now be found scattered throughout the world. In Binyang Central Cave, several heads and large portions of the relief carvings were cut or burned out of the walls. Fragments from Binyang Central Cave now reside in museums in the US and Japan, as well as in storage at the Longmen Research Institute in China. Many shattered pieces are identifiable today with the evidence of historical photographs and rubbings taken of the reliefs before their removal.
386 - 534

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.
386
1916

Longmen Binyang Central Cave, west wall, Yamanaka Postcards of China, circa 1912
  • Title Translation: 龙门宾阳中洞 , 西壁，山中 中国明信片，约 1912 年
  • Period: Northern Wei, 386–534 C.E.
  • Project: Longmen Binyang Central Cave
  • Work Description: The Longmen Caves are located outside the city of Luoyang, China, about 500 miles southeast of the modern-day capital in Beijing. Established in the late fifth century, the site consists of 2,345 caves, and over 100,000 individual Buddhist statues, ranging in height from a few inches to over 56 feet. For more than 250 years, Chinese Buddhists from all walks of life sponsored the addition of Buddhist statues and inscriptions to the site, most significantly from the late Northern Wei (386-534) through the Tang dynasty (618-907). Binyang Central Cave is one of the earliest at Longmen and a major monument of Chinese Buddhism. Begun around the year 501, it was commissioned by the youthful Emperor Xuanwu (483-515) and dedicated to his father, Emperor Xiaowen, who died in 499 at age thirty-three. The cave is one of the major monuments of Chinese Buddhism. MEasuring roughly 30 feet in each dimension, its principal image is 28-foot-high seated Buddha largly filling the back of the cave and accompanied by smaller standing figures—disciples, Buddhas, and bodhisattva—on either side. The exit wall contained some of the finest stone relief carvings of the era, including depictions of two imperial processions, and a number of stories from Buddhist scriptures. After cave-making was discontinued for nearly a thousand years, the Longmen site was "discovered" by foreign scholars in the late 1800s. The publication of their studies with photos attracted international attention to the artistic quality of the sculptures. The publications ultimately led to the looting of much of the site in the early part of the twentieth century. In response to demand from art dealers, collectors, and museums around the globe, local stonecutters removed countless works from the caves, often breaking them into numerous fragments in the process. Pieces from the greater Longmen complex can now be found scattered throughout the world. In Binyang Central Cave, several heads and large portions of the relief carvings were cut or burned out of the walls. Fragments from Binyang Central Cave now reside in museums in the US and Japan, as well as in storage at the Longmen Research Institute in China. Many shattered pieces are identifiable today with the evidence of historical photographs and rubbings taken of the reliefs before their removal.
386 - 534

Longmen Binyang Central Cave, south wall, Yamanaka Postcards of China, circa 1912
  • Title Translation: 龙门宾阳中洞 , 南壁，山中中国明信片，约 1912 年
  • Period: Northern Wei, 386–534 C.E.
  • Project: Longmen Binyang Central Cave
  • Work Description: The Longmen Caves are located outside the city of Luoyang, China, about 500 miles southeast of the modern-day capital in Beijing. Established in the late fifth century, the site consists of 2,345 caves, and over 100,000 individual Buddhist statues, ranging in height from a few inches to over 56 feet. For more than 250 years, Chinese Buddhists from all walks of life sponsored the addition of Buddhist statues and inscriptions to the site, most significantly from the late Northern Wei (386-534) through the Tang dynasty (618-907). Binyang Central Cave is one of the earliest at Longmen and a major monument of Chinese Buddhism. Begun around the year 501, it was commissioned by the youthful Emperor Xuanwu (483-515) and dedicated to his father, Emperor Xiaowen, who died in 499 at age thirty-three. The cave is one of the major monuments of Chinese Buddhism. MEasuring roughly 30 feet in each dimension, its principal image is 28-foot-high seated Buddha largly filling the back of the cave and accompanied by smaller standing figures—disciples, Buddhas, and bodhisattva—on either side. The exit wall contained some of the finest stone relief carvings of the era, including depictions of two imperial processions, and a number of stories from Buddhist scriptures. After cave-making was discontinued for nearly a thousand years, the Longmen site was "discovered" by foreign scholars in the late 1800s. The publication of their studies with photos attracted international attention to the artistic quality of the sculptures. The publications ultimately led to the looting of much of the site in the early part of the twentieth century. In response to demand from art dealers, collectors, and museums around the globe, local stonecutters removed countless works from the caves, often breaking them into numerous fragments in the process. Pieces from the greater Longmen complex can now be found scattered throughout the world. In Binyang Central Cave, several heads and large portions of the relief carvings were cut or burned out of the walls. Fragments from Binyang Central Cave now reside in museums in the US and Japan, as well as in storage at the Longmen Research Institute in China. Many shattered pieces are identifiable today with the evidence of historical photographs and rubbings taken of the reliefs before their removal.
386 - 534

Longmen Binyang Central Cave, northeast wall, showing removed Vimalakīrti relief
  • Title Translation: 龙门宾阳中洞 , 东北壁，显示已拆除的维摩诘浮雕
  • Period: Northern Wei, 386–534 C.E.
  • Project: Longmen Binyang Central Cave
  • Work Description: The Longmen Caves are located outside the city of Luoyang, China, about 500 miles southeast of the modern-day capital in Beijing. Established in the late fifth century, the site consists of 2,345 caves, and over 100,000 individual Buddhist statues, ranging in height from a few inches to over 56 feet. For more than 250 years, Chinese Buddhists from all walks of life sponsored the addition of Buddhist statues and inscriptions to the site, most significantly from the late Northern Wei (386-534) through the Tang dynasty (618-907). Binyang Central Cave is one of the earliest at Longmen and a major monument of Chinese Buddhism. Begun around the year 501, it was commissioned by the youthful Emperor Xuanwu (483-515) and dedicated to his father, Emperor Xiaowen, who died in 499 at age thirty-three. The cave is one of the major monuments of Chinese Buddhism. MEasuring roughly 30 feet in each dimension, its principal image is 28-foot-high seated Buddha largly filling the back of the cave and accompanied by smaller standing figures—disciples, Buddhas, and bodhisattva—on either side. The exit wall contained some of the finest stone relief carvings of the era, including depictions of two imperial processions, and a number of stories from Buddhist scriptures. After cave-making was discontinued for nearly a thousand years, the Longmen site was "discovered" by foreign scholars in the late 1800s. The publication of their studies with photos attracted international attention to the artistic quality of the sculptures. The publications ultimately led to the looting of much of the site in the early part of the twentieth century. In response to demand from art dealers, collectors, and museums around the globe, local stonecutters removed countless works from the caves, often breaking them into numerous fragments in the process. Pieces from the greater Longmen complex can now be found scattered throughout the world. In Binyang Central Cave, several heads and large portions of the relief carvings were cut or burned out of the walls. Fragments from Binyang Central Cave now reside in museums in the US and Japan, as well as in storage at the Longmen Research Institute in China. Many shattered pieces are identifiable today with the evidence of historical photographs and rubbings taken of the reliefs before their removal.
386 - 534

Longmen Binyang Central Cave, southwest corner
  • Title Translation: 龙门宾阳中洞 , 西南角
  • Period: Northern Wei, 386–534 C.E.
  • Project: Longmen Binyang Central Cave
  • Work Description: The Longmen Caves are located outside the city of Luoyang, China, about 500 miles southeast of the modern-day capital in Beijing. Established in the late fifth century, the site consists of 2,345 caves, and over 100,000 individual Buddhist statues, ranging in height from a few inches to over 56 feet. For more than 250 years, Chinese Buddhists from all walks of life sponsored the addition of Buddhist statues and inscriptions to the site, most significantly from the late Northern Wei (386-534) through the Tang dynasty (618-907). Binyang Central Cave is one of the earliest at Longmen and a major monument of Chinese Buddhism. Begun around the year 501, it was commissioned by the youthful Emperor Xuanwu (483-515) and dedicated to his father, Emperor Xiaowen, who died in 499 at age thirty-three. The cave is one of the major monuments of Chinese Buddhism. MEasuring roughly 30 feet in each dimension, its principal image is 28-foot-high seated Buddha largly filling the back of the cave and accompanied by smaller standing figures—disciples, Buddhas, and bodhisattva—on either side. The exit wall contained some of the finest stone relief carvings of the era, including depictions of two imperial processions, and a number of stories from Buddhist scriptures. After cave-making was discontinued for nearly a thousand years, the Longmen site was "discovered" by foreign scholars in the late 1800s. The publication of their studies with photos attracted international attention to the artistic quality of the sculptures. The publications ultimately led to the looting of much of the site in the early part of the twentieth century. In response to demand from art dealers, collectors, and museums around the globe, local stonecutters removed countless works from the caves, often breaking them into numerous fragments in the process. Pieces from the greater Longmen complex can now be found scattered throughout the world. In Binyang Central Cave, several heads and large portions of the relief carvings were cut or burned out of the walls. Fragments from Binyang Central Cave now reside in museums in the US and Japan, as well as in storage at the Longmen Research Institute in China. Many shattered pieces are identifiable today with the evidence of historical photographs and rubbings taken of the reliefs before their removal.
386 - 534