The art of the Sui Dynasty caves at Dunhuang

The Buddhist cave temple complex at the site called Dunhuang is located in the Gobi Desert of Gansu Province in northwest China. From the fourth to the fourteenth centuries, it served as a pilgrimage site along the ancient Silk Route between China and Central Asia.; The caves at Dunhuang constitute a body of material which encompasses painting, sculpture and architectural design. This dissertation focuses on caves attributed to the Sui Dynasty (585-618 AD), a brief but crucial transition point in the development of Chinese Buddhist art and thought from a foreign religion into one which was adapted to the existing social and religious structure of sixth century China.; The most important achievement of the Sui Dynasty was the reunification of the empire after three centuries of division under a single ruler who utilized Buddhism as a tool of imperial policy. This policy was implemented throughout the empire in a program of temple construction and monastic training, with the capital serving as the center. Yet within this same brief dynasty, fresh artistic and religious influences were also felt from central Asia.; Several caves with dated Sui inscriptions serve as cornerstones for a periodization of the material. Other caves exhibit examples of sculptural style, pictorial themes and architectural design which bear evidence of influence from historical and religious events engineered by the two Sui emperors.; The Late Zhou/Early Sui period primarily preserves the narrative content and monastic function of earlier caves. The High Sui period exemplifies a new influx of Central Asian style, motifs and pictorial conception. The Middle Sui period bears testimony to the cosmopolitan and possibly imperial influence of the unified Sui empire. The Late Sui/Early Tang period heralds a distinctively Chinese Buddhist art, filled with iconic images and adapted to both imperial and popular aesthetics and beliefs.; Such a study of a brief but important time span at a single site such as Dunhuang serves to underscore the continual cross-cultural influences which characterized Chinese Buddhism and Buddhist art in the sixth and seventh centuries.