Ten Thousand Buddhas Palace

Ten Thousand Buddhas Palace

Ten Thousand Buddhas Palace

Amidst the misty haze of the Flaming Mountains and along the lush Muted Gully, a grand cultural landmark stands on the west side of National Highway 312 with its unique artistic style. It is the Xinjiang Desert Earth Art Museum, which opened to the public in May 1991. Geographic coordinates: 89°32′7″E, 42°56′8″N, at an altitude of 140 meters. Four kilometers north from Shengjinkou on National Highway 312, where the scenic route to the Bezeklik Thousand Buddha Caves begins, you will see a large parking lot. Behind it, atop a high slope, stands a grand complex of ethnic-style architecture. At its center is a 14-meter-high brick-patterned gate, clearly inspired by Uyghur architectural styles and Turpan’s grape-drying houses—this is the Xinjiang Desert Earth Art Museum. Passing through the gate, you’ll find several domed buildings of varying sizes, arranged in a staggered fashion, with round tops atop square bases, exuding a uniquely mysterious Central Asian aura that stirs the imagination. Beyond the front courtyard, you’ll face three interconnected domes, surrounded by small towers, resembling a Vajra Throne Pagoda Temple. This is the magnificent Ten Thousand Buddhas Palace, the centerpiece of the Desert Earth Art Museum. This grand fortress-like structure consists of three domed buildings, each with a diameter of ten meters and a height of twelve meters, making it the largest ancient Buddhist art hall in Xinjiang to date.