Buddhist Grottoes in East China Under RepairChinese engineers have started repairing the Qianfoya Buddhist Grottoes in east China's Nanjing city, a heritage of the Northern and Southern Dynasties about 1, 500 years ago.Located on Qixiashan Mountain to the northeast of Nanjing, the Qianfoya Grottoes are said to be the oldest and largest Buddhist grottoes in southern China. There are 515 statues of Buddhist figures in the 252 grottoes carved out of the cliffs. Since the repair work started last May, engineers from the Institute of Cultural Relics Protection under the Nanjing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics have reinforced 11 grottoes by injecting concrete into the cracks in the cliffs. The walls of the grottoes and the statues were also cleaned and protected against efflorescence. Che Guangjin, an official in charge of the project said that in the next stage they will repair the statues. The plans for the repairs are being worked on. The whole project will be completed in two or three years, said Che. |
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