Luoyang City Longmen Grottoes in Henan Province 河南洛阳龙门石窟

龙门石窟位于中国中部河南省洛阳市南郊12.5公里处，龙门峡谷东西两崖的峭壁间。因为这里东、西两山对峙，伊水从中流过，看上去宛若门厥，所以又被称为“伊厥”，唐代以后，多称其为“龙门”。这里地处交通要冲，山清水秀，气候宜人，是文人墨客的观游胜地。又因为龙门石窟所在的岩体石质优良，宜于雕刻，所以古人选择此处开凿石窟。
Longmen Grottoes are situated between the east and west steep cliffs of Longmen Gorge, 12.5km away in the southern suburbs of Luoyang City, Henan Province in the central part of China. As two mountains stand opposite to each other on the east and west sides with Yi River flowing in between, this place looks very much like a door stone. So, it was also called Yi Stone, but since Tang Dynasty, it has been better known as Longmen. This place is actually an important hub of communications with clear waters and green mountains and comfortable weather, so it has been a tourist attraction for sight-seers and men of letters. Also, because the fine texture of rock wher Longmen Grottoes lie proved suitable for engraving, people in old times chose this place for engraving the grottoes.
龙门石窟与甘肃敦煌莫高窟、山西大同云冈石窟并称为“中国三大石刻艺术宝库”。石窟始凿于北魏孝文帝时（公元471～477年），历经400余年才建成，迄今已有1500年的历史，龙门石窟南北长约1公里，现存石窟1300多个，窟龛2345个，题记和碑刻3600余品，佛塔50余座，佛像97000余尊。其中以宾阳中洞、奉先寺和古阳洞最具有代表性。
Longmen Grottoes, Dunhuang Buddhist Grottoes and Yungang Grottoes in Datong of Shanxi are together called China Three Treasure Houses of Stone Engravings. First engraved during the reign of Emperor Xiaowen in the North Wei Dynasty (471-477 AD), it took more than 400 years to complete. Now it has a history of 1,500 years. The Longmen Grottoes are about one kilometer long from north to south, housing over 1,300 caves, 2,345 statues, 3,600 pieces of inscriptions or tombstone engravings, 50 Buddhist pagodas, and more than 97,000 Buddhist statues. And Binyang Middle Cavity, Fengxian Temple and Guyang Cavity are among the most typical.
宾阳中洞是北魏时期（公元386～512年）的代表性作品。这个洞窟前后用了24年才建成，是开凿时间最长的一个洞窟。洞内有11尊大佛像。主像释迦牟尼像，面部清秀，神情自然，堪称北魏中期石雕艺术的杰作。主像座前刻有两只姿态雄健的石狮。左右侍立二弟子，二菩萨，菩萨像含笑凝眸，温柔敦厚。洞中还雕刻着众菩萨，弟子听法的浮雕像，栩栩如生。窟顶飞天仙子的刻画也十分传神。
Binyang Middle Cavity is a typical piece of North Wei Dynasty (386-512 AD). Totally, the construction took 24 years to complete with the longest period of excavation. Inside, there are 11 giant Buddhist statues and the primary one, Śākyamuni, has a charming facial feature in a composed manner and is really a masterpiece of stone engravings in the middle of North Wei Dynasty. In front of the major statue, there lie two fantastically strong stone lions. Standing on two sides are the two disciples, two bodhisattvas, who are gazing forward smilingly and look sweet yet massive. In addition, there are a crowd of bodhisattva engravings and statues of disciples attending lectures of scripture in the cavity, all appearing to be true to life. And the flying fairy on the roof the grotto is equally vivid.
奉先寺卢舍那大佛，高17.14米，面容丰满秀丽，双目宁静，微露笑意，形象庄严又不失睿智慈祥，被誉为东方的“蒙娜丽莎”。
The Lushena Giant Buddha of Fengxian Temple is 17.14m high with round and charming complexion and serene eyes. With a slight smile on its face, the statue looks stately yet sagacious and generous, claimed as the Oriental Mona Lisa.
奉先寺是龙门石窟中最大的一个窟，代表了唐代（公元618～904年）石刻艺术的风格。它长宽各30余米。整个奉先寺的雕塑群是一个完美的艺术整体，其中的卢舍那雕像更是一件精美绝伦的艺术杰作。卢舍那佛像总高约17米，丰腴典雅，栩栩如生。她那智慧的双眼，稍稍向下俯视，目光正好与朝拜者仰视的目光交汇，令人产生心灵上的震撼，具有无穷的艺术魅力。
Fengxian Temple is in the largest of the Longmen Grottoes, embodying the style of stone engravings of Tang Dynasty (618-904 AD). Thirty by thirty meters in size, the whole statue of Fengxian Temple stands a perfect piece of art, with the statute of Lushena being a fantastic masterpiece. With a total height of 17m, the Lushena Buddha looks sturdy and graceful and is really true to life. She looks down slightly, her eyes full of wisdom while the worshippers look up, feeling awe-inspired inside when her eyes look into theirs. The artistic appeal is untold, indeed.
古阳洞是龙门石窟中开凿最早，内容最丰富的一座，也是北魏时期的另一代表洞窟。古阳洞中有很多佛龛造像，这些佛龛造像多有题记，记录了当时造像者的姓名，造像年月及缘由，这些都是研究北魏书法和雕刻艺术的珍贵资料。中国书法史上的里程碑“龙门二十品”，大部分集中在这里。“龙门二十品”代表了魏碑体，字体端正大方，气势刚健有力，是龙门石窟碑刻书法艺术的精华，历来为世人所推崇。
Guyang Cavity, the one excavated earliest of the Longmen Grottoes, abounds in what is worth exploring and is also another style of grotto in North Wei Dynasty. Inside Guyang Cavity, there are many Buddhist Statues, on which are inscriptions recording the names of engravers, dates and reasons for making them. All these constitute precious data for researching calligraphy and engraving art of North Wei Dynasty. As the milestone in China’s history of calligraphy, Longmen Twenty Masterpieces are basically found here, representing the style of calligraphy of tombstone inscriptions, which appear to be well-poised and natural with strong and forceful strokes. They are the cream of calligraphy of tombstone inscriptions in Longmen Grottoes and have been highly appreciated and valued even up till today.
龙门石窟还保留有大量的宗教、美术、书法、音乐、服饰、医药、建筑和中外交通等方面的实物史料。因此，它又是一座大型的石刻艺术博物馆。
In Longmen Grottoes, there is a wealth of historical data of real stuff preserved, concerning religion, fine arts, calligraphy, music, garment, medicine, architecture and communications at home and abroad. Therefore, the grottoes are also a large art gallery of stone engravings.