Tongjiang Thousand Buddha Rock Caves

Tongjiang Thousand Buddha Rock Caves

The Tongjiang Thousand Buddha Rock Caves are a National Key Cultural Relics Protection Unit.

The Tongjiang Thousand Buddha Rock Caves are located in Qianfo Village, Nuojiang Town, Tongjiang County, Sichuan Province. The caves were carved between the third year of the Longshuo era (663 AD) and the seventh year of the Kaiyuan era (719 AD) during the Tang Dynasty, spanning a period of 56 years. There are a total of 54 niches containing over 3,000 Buddha statues, distributed across the front and left side of a 10-meter-high, 53-meter-wide white sandstone cliff. The front features 28 niches carved during the peak of the Tang Dynasty, while the left side has 26 niches from the early Tang Dynasty. The entire ensemble includes niches such as the Pure Land Transformation, Heavenly Kings and Eight Divisions, Dharma preaching scenes, a seven-tiered pagoda, and a Thousand Buddha screen. The main figures depicted include Sakyamuni, Guanyin, Mahasthamaprapta, Four Buddhas, Three Ages of Buddhas, Bhaisajyaguru (Medicine Buddha), guardian warriors, donors, and musicians. The niches come in various shapes, including square niches, double-eave niches, and arched niches. The carving techniques involve high relief, low relief, line engraving, and openwork carving. The Thousand Buddha Rock Caves are grand in scale, richly decorated, exquisitely carved, and remarkably lifelike. They embody both the simplicity of the early Tang Dynasty and the elegance of the peak Tang Dynasty, serving as invaluable material evidence for the study of Tang Dynasty clothing, fine arts, painting, sculpture, and architecture. Notably, the 3.7-meter-tall seven-tiered relief pagoda niche and the Four Buddhas Seated Together niche are particularly significant. The former features overlapping inverted-V-shaped beams—an architectural element found only here and in the line carvings on the lintel stone of the Great Wild Goose Pagoda in Xi’an—making it a precious physical resource for studying architectural history and art. In September 1996, the Sichuan Provincial People’s Government designated the site as part of the fourth batch of Provincial Cultural Relics Protection Units. On June 2, 2006, the State Council officially recognized the caves as part of the sixth batch of National Key Cultural Relics Protection Units.

Protected Area: Extends 40 meters outward on both the left and right sides of the caves, and 40 meters backward from the cliff top and forward from the base where the caves are distributed. ⟦6

Construction control zone: 10 meters beyond the protected area.

Further reading:

· Sixth batch of Major National Historical and Cultural Sites