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China to Build Bamiyan Buddha Statue Replica
A private Chinese entrepreneur announced Thursday in Chengdu he would build a replica of the Buddha statue at Bamiyan Valley in Afghanistan on the cliff of Leshan Mountain.
"The Buddha statue at Bamiyan Valley is the common wealth of humankind. The aim of building the replica is to make it possible for those who have never seen the statue to look for themselves at its great beauty," said Liang Enming, chairman of the Oriental Buddha Land Co. Ltd.
There were two Buddha statues at Bamiyan Valley, Afghanistan. The taller of the two was 53 meters high, once thought to be the tallest of its kind in the world. The statues, together with the world tallest Buddha at Leshan Mountain in southwest China's Sichuan Province, were deemed as "world wonders". Unfortunately, the statues at Bamiyan Valley were blown up by Taliban militia last month.
Liang has built a park featuring replicas of famous Buddha statues from around the globe in Leshan City where the 1,280 year old Leshan Buddha stands. The park has replicas of more than 3,000 Buddha statues including world-famous Buddha statues in India, Thailand and Myanmar.
Construction of the replica is to start in May and will be completed at the end of this year, costing an estimated 200,000 yuan. Experts at the Sichuan Institute of Fine Arts will take charge of the project, Liang said.
As Leshan is not as high as the mountain at Bamiyan, the replica statue will be half the size of the original, Tan Yun, president of the Sichuan Institute of Fine Arts, said, pointing at a miniature model.
The Buddha statue at Bamiyan had been seriously eroded before it was damaged. Its nose was damaged beyond recognition, which will make it tremendously difficult to make the replica, Tan added.
It is reported that a number of countries and non-governmental figures offered to buy the debris of statue to reproduce it after it was damaged.
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