Experts to Discuss Latest Results of Dunhuang StudiesOver 200 experts and scholars from home and abroad will gather next month to discuss the latest findings in Dunhuang Studies.To mark the 100th anniversary of the discovery of the Dunhuang cave containing thousands of centuries-old documents and relics, the Dunhuang Academy and the Chinese Dunhuang-Turpan Society will hold an international symposium on Dunhuang Studies from July 29 to August 3 at the Mogao Grottoes here. The Dunhuang Library Cave was accidentally found by a Taoist priest when he was clearing sand from the No. 16 grotto on June 22, 1900. The cave, sealed for 850 years, holds more than 50,000 relics dating between the 4th century and 11th century. The symposium will cover a wide range of subjects, such as the modern-day function of the cave, the losses and categorization of the relics, the achievements of Dunhuang Studies and the comparative studies of the cave, sources from the academy said. Noted scholars and experts from Hong Kong, Japan, Britain, Russia as well as China will participate in the symposium, which has already received over 150 theses. Historic documents record that the first cave in the Mogao Grottoes was formed in 366 A.D. Despite erosion and man-made destruction, the 492 existing caves are well preserved, with frescoes covering an area of 45,000 square meters, more than 2,000 colored sculptured figures and five wooden eaves overhanging the caves. Archaeologists say that the Mogao Grottoes are the most complete repository of Buddhist art in the world. The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) listed it on the World Heritage List in 1987. |
| People's Daily Online --- http://www.peopledaily.com.cn/english/ |