Datong (part 4)- Yungang Grottoes

Our last morning in Datong was spent at the Yungang Grottoes. I had no idea of what to expect other than large Buddha statues.

The place was beyond amazing. We were taken in to these caves with literally thousands of carvings on the wall. The tallest statue was 56 feet high, the smallest was 2 centimeters.

We are talking 51,000 statues in 53 caves, stretching more than 1 km in length!

The basic story behind the caves is that a Chinese emperor persecuted and killed a bunch of Buddhists some 1,500 years ago.

When the guy got older, he decided that wasn't a good idea. He ordered his son to carry out an apology. That apology is the caves. For more than 60 years, people worked at carving Buddhas of with all different shapes, sizes and facial expressions.

They would start way up high on the side of the sandstone mountain and dig a tunnel in. Then they would begin shaping the Buddha from the top down.

The first few attempts were mis-measured so the feet of the giant statue are either missing or badly misshapen. (DOH!) After a bit, the carvers caught on and the remaining Buddhas all have feet.

Some statues were painted, others like the ones you see in my pictures, are just plain.

The grottoes have been destroyed over time by war and nature but in 2001 the Chinese government got serious about protecting them and listed the site on the UNESCO World Cultural Heritage List.

Definitely a cool place to visit...if you like mountains turned temples.