

The site of the Longmen Grottoes is situated in a scenic natural environment. The Highlights You Should Not Miss on West Hill The statues in Fengxian Temple reveal the characteristics of the Tang Dynasty. The statues in Guyang Cave show the typical style of the Northern Wei Dynasty. Due to the different standards of beauty, the images from the Northern Wei Dynasty have long and thin features while the images from the Tang Dynasty have round and plump features. Therefore, the statues in the Longmen Caves reflect two main different styles, from the Northern Wei Dynasty and the Tang Dynasty. Thirty percent of the caves and statues in the Longmen Caves date back to the Northern Wei Dynasty and 60% date back to the Tang Dynasty, while less than 10% hail from other periods. In 2002, the site of the Longmen Grottoes was added to the World Heritage List.ĭifferent Types of Statues in the Longmen Caves.In 1982, the site was declared one of the first tourist zones to be protected at the state level.During the Second Sino-Japanese War (1937–45), many statues were destroyed.In 1227, the construction gradually declined and eventually ceased due to war between the Song and Yuan dynasties.The construction of the Longmen Caves continued and it was the most active period in its construction. In the Tang Dynasty (618–907), Chinese Buddhism reached its second peak.Buddhism in China reached its peak for the first time. The construction of the Longmen Caves started in 493, when Emperor Xiaowen of the Northern Wei Dynasty (386–534) shifted his capital from Datong to Luoyang.It has 2,300 grottoes and niches, as well as 2,500 inscribed stone tablets.It contains over 100,000 Buddhist images and statues.The smallest Buddha is only 2 centimeters (0.7 inches) tall.The largest Buddha statue is 17.14 meters (56.23 feet) tall.They are 1,000 meters (1,094 yards) from north to south.


The Longmen Grottoes cover an area of 30,000 square meters (7.4 acres).7 Useful Numbers Related to the Longmen Caves In 2000, UNESCO included the Longmen Grottoes on its World Heritage List. UNESCO states that the site is “an outstanding manifestation of human artistic creativity”. The Longmen Caves are of great value to the history of world sculpture. The magnificence of the carvings in the Longmen Grottoes ranks first among China’s grottoes. The Longmen Grottoes is one of China’s four famous ancient grottoes (the Longmen Grottoes, the Mogao Grottoes, the Yungang Grottoes, and the Maijishan Grottoes). The carvings in Longmen Grottoes are splendid.
