Bingling (Binglingsi) Grottoes
炳灵寺石窟 · Bingling Temple · Binglingsi Thousand Buddhas
Sixteen Kingdoms to Ming ~420–1644 CE·Northwestern Chinese Buddhist (Western Qin to Tibetan)·🇨🇳 Gansu, Yongjing County, China
About
About Bingling (Binglingsi) Grottoes
Yellow River gorge cliff with 183 caves, 776 sculptures and 900 m² murals stacked above Liujiaxia Reservoir; boat-only access since dam 1969 drowned approach. Cave 169 dated 420 CE by Western Qin inscription - earliest dated Chinese inscription in any grotto. Includes 27 m Maitreya cliff Buddha of Sui. Sandstone conglomerate with wood plank scaffold remnants.
Why it mattersEarliest dated Buddhist cave inscription in China; Yellow River gorge sequence.
Open questions
Mysteries & theories
Mysteries
- 01420 inscription carving date vs painting date
- 02Reservoir lake level effect on microclimate
Theories
- 01Yellow River as Silk Road south corridor
- 02Bingling as Western Qin legitimation project
Theories are interpretations, not findings. The seal above tells you how much scholarly weight the place carries.
History
How it came to be
- Built
- c.420–1644 CE, early inscription 420 Western Qin
- Period
- Sixteen Kingdoms to Ming ~420–1644 CE
- Culture
- Northwestern Chinese Buddhist (Western Qin to Tibetan)
- Builders
- Western Qin king Qifu Chipan donor of Cave 169
- Purpose
- Yellow River pilgrimage grotto chain guarding Lanzhou gorge
- Excavation
- Excavation ongoing
c.420–1644 CE, early inscription 420 Western Qin
Initial construction
c. 1568 CE
Major expansion
On the ground
Structures & features
35.8250° N · 103.7150° E · 1700 m · 2 mapped features
Cave 169 – Western Qin Inscription
cave420 CE dated niche with inscription
35.8252° N · 103.7153° EBig Maitreya Cliff
rock cut sculpture27 m Tang Maitreya on cliff face
35.8248° N · 103.7148° E