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Baicheng County, Aksu, Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region
one of the earliest and largest grottoes group in China
Kezil Grottoes is located on the cliff opposite the Queletage Mountain on the north bank of Muzati River, seven kilometers southeast of Kezil Township, Baicheng County. Kezil means red in Uygur language. Probably the color of Queletage Mountain is ochre red, and it is red under the sunset, which is beautiful when reflected on the surface of the river, hence the name. The Kezil Grottoes stretch for about three kilometers from east to west. The cave is divided into four areas: the west valley, the inner valley, the east valley and the back mountain.
There are still a number of unnumbered caves, with a total of nearly 350 caves. According to underground detection, it is estimated that there are still a number of caves buried underground. Kezil Grottoes is the largest cave group in Qiuci Grottoes with the largest preserved mural area, and it is a typical representative of Qiuci Grottoes. In 2014, Kezil Grottoes was listed as a World Cultural Heritage List Site of Silk Roads: the Routes Network of Chang'an - Tianshan Corridor.
The statues and murals of Kizil Thousand Buddha Cave are painted in the cave. Although most of the statues have been destroyed, the murals are still preserved about 5,000 square meters. The themes of murals are mainly stories of Buddhism. The murals and sculptures in Kizil Thousand-Buddha Cave show the brilliant achievements of Buddhist art in ancient western regions, which is of great artistic value and historical significance.
Kezil Grottoes were built in the 3rd century and ended in the 8th-9th century. They are the earliest large-scale grottoes in China. It is called the four largest grottoes in China together with Mogao Grottoes in Gansu, Yungang Grottoes in Datong, Shanxi and Longmen Grottoes in Luoyang, Henan. Kezil Grottoes have been destroyed by nature and man-made, and the remaining sculptures are rare. The Nirvana Buddha statue painted with clay sculpture in Cave 1 is the only one in Xinjiang at present. The largest number of well-preserved murals have become the most precious remains of Kezil Grottoes. Mural themes are mainly related to Sakyamuni's deeds.
The content of mural remains can be roughly divided into four periods, namely, initial stage, development stage, prosperity stage and decline stage.
Initial Stage
From the end of the 3rd century to the middle of the 4th century, Kizil Grottoes was in its infancy. During this period, the caves were mainly square caves. Large-scale cave appeared in the later period, and it is a major feature of Qiuci Buddhism to dig a big cave and shape a large Buddha.
The Cave 47 in Kezil is 16.5 meters high. It is the largest cave in Qiuci Grottoes, which was in the middle of the 4th century. And it is the earliest cave with large-scale statue of Buddha excavated in the world. In this period, the characters in murals have obvious foreign styles, especially influenced by Gandhara arts. Although Gandhara art is mainly sculpture, its artistic features are also reflected in Qiuci murals. There are many similarities between the images of heaven and man in Kezil murals and the Bodhisattva statues of Gandhara in the 3rd century.
Development Stage
The development period(from the middle of the 4th century to the end of the 5th century) is the period when the main features of the art model of Qiuci Grottoes are formed. At this time, the painting style has developed in the direction of nationalization in this area. The head of the figure is round, the frontal bone is wide and flat, and the facial features are concentrated, which has the characteristics of Qiuci people's head shape. The figure is well proportioned and has long legs.
The emphasis and delicacy of shading method are the characteristics of painting techniques in this period. With the appearance of the central column cave, rhombus is painted as the basic composition form of the top of the main room cave. The theme content is richer, and Bunsen stories and karma stories appear in large numbers, which are the main performance themes of murals.
Prosperity Stage
In the prosperous period(6th-7th century AD), the painting style of murals in the prosperous period inherited and developed the local national tradition of Qiuci formed in the developing period. The figure form has been completely Qiuci: the face is fuller, the nose is straight and close to the lips. The curve of human body modeling, that is, the "three-bend method", is enhanced, which may be influenced by the Buddhist art of Gupta, India. The costumes of the characters are more gorgeous, and the clothes are soft and transparent.
Decline Stage
In the declining period(from the 8th century to the 9th century), the caves with murals were: 129, 135, 197, 227, 180 and 229. The main feature of murals in this period is that the themes of thousands of Buddhas emerged in large numbers, while other themes were drastically reduced or disappeared. The scale of caves is getting smaller and smaller, the painting techniques are simple and rough, and the colors are monotonous.
The best time to visit Kezil Thousand Buddha Grottoes is May to October. And June to August is the peak season of Xinjiang travel, when attractions in Xinjiang will be full of domestic tourists.
Kezil Grottoes is located about 230 kilometers from Aksu, and it takes about 3 hours’ drive to get to Kezil Thousand Buddha Grottoes from Aksu.
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