Five Temple Caves, Buddhist cave complex in Subei Mongol Autonomous County, China.
The Five Temple Caves (Wugemiao shiku) are rock-cut Buddhist caves in a gorge on the left bank of the Danghe River in Subei Mongol Autonomous County, Gansu. The complex once numbered twenty-two caves; five gave the site its name, and four with murals remain. One cave is dated to the Northern Wei, the other three to the Five Dynasties and Song.
The complex once held twenty-two caves, reduced over the centuries to five, of which four with murals remain in a gorge on the left bank of the Danghe River. On the basis of structure and iconography, one cave is dated to the Northern Wei and the other three to the Five Dynasties and Song. In 2013 SACH designated the site a Major Historical and Cultural Site Protected at the National Level.
The name Wugemiao, "Five Temple Caves", records a count that has shrunk: the complex once held twenty-two caves, of which five gave the site its name and four with murals survive. The Dunhuang Academy, which also manages Mogao, the Western and Eastern Thousand Buddha Caves and Yulin, oversees the site. Five kilometres south, on the east bank of the Danghe, the One Temple Cave keeps a single painted cave with donor figures dated to the tenth century.
The caves lie in a gorge on the left bank of the Danghe River, about 80 km south of the Mogao Caves; the One Temple Cave is a further 5 km south on the east bank. The site is managed by the Dunhuang Academy, so access to the four mural caves is arranged through it rather than as an open monument.
The complex once counted twenty-two caves, reduced over the centuries to five, of which four with murals remain. A further five kilometres south, on the east bank of the Danghe, the One Temple Cave keeps a single painted cave with donor figures dated to the tenth century.
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