UNESCO World Heritage SiteNational 5A Scenic AreaNorth China
Yungang Grottoes
云冈石窟 · Shanxi, Datong
A monumental complex of 5th-century Buddhist cave temples with 51,000 statues.
The Yungang Grottoes near Datong comprise 252 caves and niches carved into a sandstone cliff, containing more than 51,000 Buddhist statues ranging from tiny figures to a 17-metre colossal Buddha. The caves represent a high point of early Chinese Buddhist art, blending Indian, Central Asian and Han Chinese styles.
Carving began in 460 AD under imperial patronage of the Northern Wei dynasty, shortly after the Tuoba rulers made Buddhism the state religion. The grottoes were largely completed by the 520s. They were inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 2001 as a masterpiece of early Buddhist cave art.
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