Xiangtangshan Caves

The Xiangtangshan Caves literally: Mountain of the Echoing Halls Caves is a group of Buddhist cave temples located in the Fengfeng Mining District approximately 20 km to the southwest of the City of Handan, in Hebei province, China. The oldest cave temples inside the group date to the Northern Qi, one of the Northern dynasties within the sixth century, and have been sponsored by way of the dynasty's court docket. The caves are positioned about 20 km to the northwest of the web site of Ye, the capital of the Northern Qi and were carved into dense limestone cliffs on mountains which can be part of the Taihang Mountains.

Since they have been now not sponsored by imperial buyers, the caves inside the southern organization tend to be smaller than those inside the northern organization. Many of the sculpture portions from the web sites were eliminated and sold the world over as early as 1909. A variety were offered to the American collector Charles Freer by means of the artwork supplier C.T. Loo, who's suspected of arranging for their elimination from China with out permission. Many at the moment are inside the Freer Gallery in Washington, D.C. Chinese regulations and Western museum practices now sell safety of such cultural treasures. The caves are a Major Historical and Cultural Site Protected on the National Level designation.