| When Buddhist grottoes spread to China from India,the functions and forms of grotto architecture had undergone great changes due to different nationalities,regions,architectural cultures and other factors.The Mogao Grottoes of Dunhuang because of its special geographical location,presented a unique developing evolution context and characteristics for grotto architectural forms in the construction of over a thousand years,and the evolution of grotto forms mainly reflected in the change of roof forms.Through the statistics and classification of roof architectural forms of the Mogao caves,it can be divided into several main types,such as flat roof,Lu roof,gabled roof,compound gabled roof,truncated pyramidal ceiling and vault roof.The roofs in different forms had their own developing tendency,and roof forms had also some potential impact on each other.Roof forms gradually changed and replaced in different periods.In the initial period,the small-sized caves were mainly in flat and Lu roof.In the Northern dynasty,the gabled roof form with obvious oriental architectural feature and the form combining gabled roof and central pillar became the main architectural forms.In the Sui and Tang dynasties,the truncated pyramidal ceiling form became gradually mature and was the main category of roof forms of the Mogao caves.The developing evolution of roof forms had brought the extension and expansion of cave space,which reflected in the roof angle and the amount of excavations of the caves.The expansion of cave space was the direct result of the development of roof forms and the improvement of grotto excavation technology.What’s more,the expansion of cave space was also closely related to the requirements of cave space for Buddhist activities.Mutual cause and effect between them promoted forms of cave roof to be developed constantly.Meanwhile,the development of roof form also affected the change of grotto layout and enhanced the architecture of Mogao caves toward the trend of "chinization". |
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