Grottoes are a significant symbol of Chinese Buddhism. Located in Dunhuang City, northwest China's Gansu Province, Mogao Grottoes, also known as the Thousand Buddha Grottoes, are the most notable Chinese Buddhist grottoes listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
The Mogao Grottoes are renowned for their abundant collection of statues and murals that span 1,000 years of Buddhist art and are the best preserved and richest treasure trove of Buddhist art in the world.
Home to 45,000 square meters of frescoes and more than 2,000 painted sculptures, the site holds great historical and religious value. Among the 735 caves, more than 200 caves are on the theme of music, featuring over 40 kinds of musical instruments. Dancing images can also be found in most of the frescos.
The Flying Apsaras, or Feitian in Mandarin, are often considered a symbol of the Mogao Grottoes. They refer to a spiritual being in Hindu and Buddhist culture with an image of a beautiful female. It is said that Chinese craftsmen first painted the apsaras in murals in the Mogao Grottoes during the Sixteen Kingdoms period (304-439).
When it came to the Tang Dynasty (618-907), the painted apsaras were characterized by traditional Chinese artistic features, marking the peak of China's Flying Apsaras art. The murals carry information about their attire, musical instruments and other social artifacts of their times.
敦煌莫高窟见证了佛教沿丝绸之路传入中国的历史，已成为世界多元文化交流的一座里程碑。
Having witnessed the spread of Buddhism along the Silk Road into China, the Mogao Grottoes have become a milestone of the diverse cultural exchanges in world history.