Concerted care for the Dunhuang culture (3)

Strengthen Basic Research

The guides at Dunhuang and the research they have carried out are crucial to tourists' appreciation of the grottoes. They explain grotto culture, the historical background of murals and the significance of the figures they feature, in effect invoking the spirit of the Dunhuang culture.

The late scholar of Chinese-Western cultural exchanges Ji Xianlin said that Dunhuang is in China, but Dunhuangology is worldwide. Fan agrees that specialists in Europe, the U.S. and Japan have all contributed to the development of Dunhuangology, but maintains that China has achieved the most.

The Dunhuang Academy carries out conservation, research, promotion and management of the Mogao Grottoes, the Yulin Grottoes and the Xi-qianfo Grottoes. Scholars at the academy specializing in Dunhuangology do research on Mogao history, archeology, religion, ethnology and arts – including painting, painted sculptures, music and dance – as well as apparel and furniture. In the past decade they have published 35 books. The academic periodical Dunhuang Research has published 137 issues since 1983.

Fan graduated from Peking University in the 1960s with a Ph.D. in archeology. She is hence adept at assessing the dates of relics according to stratigraphy and typology, and in gauging the chronology of the grottoes.

During the 15 years Fan has led the academy she has considerably advanced the work of her predecessors. In recent years she has led archeologists in compiling detailed records and archaeological reports on the caves. The year 2011 saw publication of The Archaeological Reports on Caves 266 to 275 of the Mogao Grottoes – the first volume of The Complete Works on Dunhuang Grottoes. The two-volume report records and interprets data, comprising texts, photos and maps, on 11 caves.

The Complete Works on Dunhuang Grottoes is integral to basic research on their conservation and research, Fan said. The works scientifically and systematically document each cave, including their locations, exterior, cave structures, murals and sculptures of different times. It also records their restoration in modern times, current preservation status and subsidiary inscriptions.

The project expects to publish 100 individual volumes. The second volume is now at the compiling stage.

We recommend:
Graduation season never comes back	Ways to spend happy summer vacation	The story behind models at auto show
Best scenery photos of week	Realizing Chinese Dreams through porcelain	Bashang Grassland in summer
Highlights of global stewardesses' uniform	Yu Weiwei crowned Miss World China 2013	Chinese model crowned at 8th Asian Super Contest