The Research Of Lubanyao Grottoes

Lubanyao Grottoes are located at the Southern foot of Mount Wuzhou,in the Western suburbs of Datong,Shanxi province of China.Lubanyao Grottoes are at the eastern end of the massif,on the western bank of Shilihe River which is 616 meters from the western border of Yungang Grottoes.Lubanyao Grottoes face towards the east and Shilihe River runs southward in front of the Grottoes.Lubanyao Grottoes are located at 113°06 '51 "E,40°06'57.4" N,and 1,165 meters above sea level.The formations in this area consist of the middle-upper Quaternary strata and the top Mesozoic middle Jurassic strata,also known as the Quaternary Middle Pleistocene,the Upper Pleistocene,the Holocene and the Upper-Middle Jurassic(Yungang Formation).And the lithology of the Fourth Member of the Yungang Formation is yellowish-brown and yellowish-grey sandstone,which is relatively loose and with cross-bedding development.It is easy to erode and form steep walls.Lubanyao Grottoes were built on the masses of the Fourth Member of the Yungang Formation.Between June to July in 2014,the archaeologists from the Yungang academy had made a meticulous survey over the Lubanyao Grottoes.The survey area consists of the front zones,the top zones and the neighbouring zones of the Grottoes.Between May to October in 2018 the archaeologists had cleaned and mapped the caves.The survey covered a total area of 15000 square meters,including the top of the grottoes covered a total area of 13000 square meters and the platform in front of the grottoes covered a total area of2000 square meters,570 exploration wells had been drilled and 6 exploratory trenches had been dug.The whole areas had been divided into three sectors based on the terrain in front of the grottoes and at the top of the grottoes.The Sector ?lies on the top of the grottoes,Sector ? lies on the second floor platform at the upper left of the grottoes.Sector ? lies on the platform in front of the grottoes.The Sector I lies on the top of the grottoes,the whole sector approximately presents a rectangle-shaped layout with a short north-south axis and a long east-west axis,the grottoes bear due east,the landscape here is mostly flat,the relics within this sector include the rammed earth on top of the grotto eave,burning hole relic,hard soil relic,brick structure relic,tower's foundation made out of rammed earth.Sector ? lies on the second floor platform at the upper left(north side)of the grottoes,the relics within sector?include the vestige of houses,burning hole relic,stone,stone walls,side-wrapped stone walls,stone path.Sector ? lies on the platform in front of the grottoes.The relics within sector ? include the burning hole relic,column bases in front of the grottoes,ash pile relic.The relics found on top of the grottoes(Sector?)and the second floor platform at the upper left of the grottoes(Sector ?)include pottery shreds made in the Han Dynasty or earlier,porcelain shreds made in the Liao Dynasty and Jin Dynasty,building components made in the Northern Wei Dynasty,Liao Dynasty and Jin Dynasty,stone relics,ancient coins,ironware made in the Northern Wei Dynasty.The relics found in front of the grottoes(Sector ?)and inside the caves include stone relics in the Northern Wei Dynasty,building components made in the Liao Dynasty and Jin Dynasty.There are 3 caves preserved,Cave No.1 and No.2 had been remained fairly intact,Cave No.3 had collapsed.The form of these 3 caves is the Great Buddha Cave,but there is a Buddhist altar in the center of the cave,and full of carved thousand-Buddha figures are on the walls.It is also the first announcement of the relevant information concerned with the relics found from the front zones,the top zones and inside of the grottoes.In this paper,the author manages to use the new information,and compares it with the relating cultural factors of Yungang Grottoes.A new point of view about the time of Lubanyao Grottoes has been presented.The most important thing is to propose the concept of “ The Buddhist grottoes around Pingcheng ”,by analyzing the research on cave formation,Buddhism belief,cultural exchanges,cultural influences,the paper recreates the sights of the Buddhist grottoes around the Yungang Grottoes in the Northern Wei Dynasty and the Buddhist grottoes around Pingcheng,deeply excavating the value of the Lubanyao Grottoes.