Mati Si East Grottoes — Sunan Upper Cliff Temples
马蹄寺东窟 · Mati East · Dong Mati Si
Sixteen Kingdoms to Yuan·Northern Liang, Tibetan, Uyghur, Western Xia Tangut, Mongol·🇨🇳 Gansu Province, Sunan Yugur Autonomous County, Qilian Linsong Shan east cliffs, China
About
About Mati Si East Grottoes — Sunan Upper Cliff Temples
418, 2550 m. The east cliffs host 12 newly conserved caves (Northern Liang 420 CE–Yuan) carved into friable conglomerate with 21 grottoes in 5 levels on pagoda cliff, central pillar hall 25 m imitating wooden bracket architecture and clay sculpture over rock core. Tibetan-Uyghur-W. Xia murals with Gesar hoof imprint cult, mandalas and flying apsaras. Unlike main Puguang pagoda, east grottoes preserve better Tang 33 Heavens timber-imitated balconies and Dunhuang-style apsaras.
218 steep steps to pagoda balcony overlook grassland. Gansu Culture Press He Jiying.
Why it mattersEastern Hexi conglomerate extension bridging Mati Si main and Jinta Temple, 1000-yr multicultural frontier monastery.
Open questions
Mysteries & theories
Mysteries
- 01Conglomerate hollowing without collapse
- 02Gesar hoof concretion framing
Theories
- 01Military monastery watching Qilian tribal corridor
- 02Bon sky-cult adaptation
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 CE Northern Liang founding; intensive 500–1368 CE
- Period
- Sixteen Kingdoms to Yuan
- Culture
- Northern Liang, Tibetan, Uyghur, Western Xia Tangut, Mongol
- Builders
- Hexi Zhangye patrons and Tibetan yogins
- Purpose
- Cliff monastery on Hexi-Tibetan frontier pass controlling Qilian nomad corridor
- Abandoned
- 1368 Ming; Tibetan worship continues
- Rediscovered
- 1920s Xibei; 1970s Gansu survey; 2015 Dunhuang conservation
- Excavation
- Excavation ongoing
420 CE
First east cave hermit
534 CE
Northern Wei pillar hall
1920
Xibei expedition
On the ground
Structures & features
38.4870° N · 100.4180° E · 2550 m · 2 mapped features
East Grottoes — Thousand-Buddha Hall Pillar
pillar hallCentral pillar hall 25×18 m with 500 clay arhats circumambulation, Northern Liang
38.4880° N · 100.4190° EEast Grottoes — 33 Heavens Pagoda Cave Upper
pagoda cave7-storey cliff-carved pagoda 21 grottoes in 5 levels Balcony, Puguang Temple type
38.4860° N · 100.4170° E