The Maijishan Grottoes are renowned both domestically and internationally for their beautiful natural and cultural landscapes, lifelike clay sculptures, magnificent Northern Dynasty murals, and breathtaking cliff pavilions and boardwalks. It, together with the Mogao Grottoes of Dunhuang, Datong Yungang Grottoes and Luoyang Longmen Grottoes, belongs to a large group of grottoes. They are built according to different stones. The Maijishan Grottoes have gone through thousands of years on the land of Gansu, gradually forming a unique Chinese style and Chinese style grotto art, and are therefore praised by experts as the "Oriental Sculpture Exhibition Hall". The geographical location and construction background of the grottoes. Tianshui, formerly known as "Qinzhou", is located in the upper reaches of the Wei River at the end of the Qinling Mountains in southeastern Gansu Province, and is known as the "Jiangnan on the Long River". Due to its proximity to Guanzhong and Chang'an in the east, and its geographical control over Shaanxi, Gansu, Sichuan, and Ningxia, it has been a strategic location for military strategists and a major hub for transportation and trade on the Silk Road since ancient times. The famous Maijishan Grottoes are located on a solitary peak and cliff on the Xiaolongshan branch of the Qinling Mountains, 30 kilometers southeast of this ancient city. Maiji Mountain, also known as "Maiji Cliff", was first named in the "Biography of Eminent Monks: Xuangao Biography", which records that the eminent monk Xuangao from Shiyang Temple in Guanzhong, due to the turbulent situation, "Zhang Ce Xi Qin, secluded himself in Maiji Mountain". According to the Biography of Li Huan in the Book of Wei, in the third year of the Zhengshi reign of Northern Wei (506 AD), Lv Gouer, the chief clerk of Qinzhou, rebelled, and Li Huan, the governor of Liangzhou, ordered Shi Changle and others to come to the aid from Maijiya. As for why this strange peak stands alone at the end of the mountain ridge, Wang Renyu, a literary figure and great poet of the Five Dynasties, has a wonderful description in his book "Yutang Idle Talk: Maijishan": "Maijishan spans the Qing Wei River to the north and gradually merges into the south; there are five hundred miles of hills and ridges, half of which is Maijishan; a single stone rises, reaching a height of one million fathoms; looking at it, it looks like a group of farmers accumulating wheat, hence the name." As for the excavation and construction of Maijishan Grottoes, according to historical records, it was first excavated during the Later Qin period of the Sixteen Kingdoms. Since then, the Northern Wei, Western Wei, Northern Zhou, Sui, Tang, Five Dynasties, Song, Yuan, Ming, and Qing dynasties have continuously expanded and constructed, lasting for more than 1600 years. There are currently 221 caves and niches of various sizes, 3938 statues with 10632 bodies, nearly 1000 square meters of murals, as well as a large number of inscriptions, scriptures, documents, and other cultural relics. The Wei, Jin, Southern and Northern Dynasties were an important period of political turmoil, cultural change, and ethnic migration in Chinese history. They were also a critical stage for the intersection, collision, and integration of foreign Buddhist art and traditional Chinese culture. The Maijishan Grottoes, located on the southern route of the Silk Road at that time, were a true reflection and precious historical relic of this transformation in the Guanzhong and Longyou regions. In the 3rd and 4th centuries AD, Indian Buddhism, active in Central Asia and the Western Regions, entered the interior of the Central Plains along the ancient Silk Road through the Hexi Corridor. Chang'an, Luoyang, Chengdu, Jiankang (Nanjing, Jiangsu) and other important centers for the dissemination of Buddhist culture at that time. Among them, Tianshui (formerly known as Qinzhou) adjacent to Chang'an also became one of the earliest areas where Buddhism was introduced into the mainland. In the second year of Yongjia in the Western Jin Dynasty (308 AD), the eminent monk Zhu Fahu re translated the "Puyao Sutra" in Tianshui. Chang'an high monk Bo Fazu has been promoting Buddhism in the Guanlong area for many years, and he has had a great influence among his followers. He is known as the "right of the letter of Confucius, worshipped as a god" in history. As a unique Danxia landform in Qinzhou, Maiji Mountain had already attracted people's attention during the Eastern Han Dynasty. At that time, Kui Xiao, who was confronting Emperor Guangwu of Han Liu Xiu, had built a summer palace in Diaochaoyu behind Maiji Mountain. Yu Xin, a great literary scholar of the Northern Zhou Dynasty, called Maijiya "the famous mountain of Longdi and the spiritual peak of Hexi". The "Qinzhou Annals" also referred to its mountain as "the crown of forests and springs in Qin territory". During the Northern and Southern Dynasties, meditation and visualization were one of the most important religious practices for monks in the northern region, and the serene and beautiful scenery of Mount Maiji naturally attracted the attention of monks. When Xuangao arrived at this place, there were already high-ranking monks from the Qin region practicing here, and the number of monks had reached as many as a hundred, indicating the flourishing Buddhist activities in Maiji Mountain at that time. As for whether there was any cave carving during this period, there is currently no clear evidence. However, based on the practical needs of monks to meditate and observe images, as well as the absolute position of the Three Buddha Thought advocated by Yao Xing in the Northern Dynasty statue system of Maijishan, it should be a historical fact that the Maijishan Grottoes were first built in the Later Qin Dynasty. With the southward migration of the Jin dynasty, various separatist regimes, big and small, established by northern nomadic tribes such as the Di, Qiang, Xiongnu, and Xianbei, engaged in long-term warfare in the northern regions centered around Chang'an, Luoyang, Yecheng, and Liangzhou (Wuwei, Gansu). The people suffered from wars, turmoil, and various forms of displacement. In addition, the rulers' admiration for Buddhism led to the emergence of grotto temples in various parts of the north, including Maijishan, like clusters of pearls embedded along the ancient Silk Road. Together, they formed a brilliant chapter in Chinese grotto art, becoming an important carrier for people to understand and comprehend the sinicization, nationalization, secularization of foreign Buddhist art, as well as cultural and artistic exchanges and interactions between ancient China and the West. Window. During the Northern Wei Dynasty, there were about 90 grotto statues in Maijishan, which were divided into three stages: early, middle, and late. In the early stages, there were caves such as 74th, 78th, 90th, 100th, 128th, and 165th, mainly concentrated in the middle and lower parts of the Western Cliff. Its shape often imitates the dome shaped tent style of ethnic minorities, with statues mainly featuring the Three Buddhas and Maitreya with crossed feet. In addition to the Three Buddhas, there has been an increase in the number of themes such as Jiao Jiao, Si Wei, Shakyamuni, Duobao, and Seven Buddhas in the caves and niches later in time, fully reflecting and embodying the Mahayana Buddhist concept of Lotus statue making. The style of the statues presents a strong artistic feature of Central Asian Gandhara and Indian Maitreya, as well as the tall, robust, and upright styling characteristics of northern nomadic peoples. It is highly consistent with the famous Yungang Tanyao Five Caves statues, which were excavated around 460 AD. In the middle period of the Northern Wei Dynasty, the size of cave niches was relatively small, and their shapes had already shown sinicized characteristics, mostly flat square and flat topped. Inside the cave, there are often Buddha pedestals or shallow circular arched niches, and there are rows of small ear niches or altar platforms on the walls. The main theme of the statues inside the cave is still three Buddhas, with one Buddha and two Bodhisattvas. At the same time, statues of disciples began to appear. In addition, a large number of exquisitely crafted shadow sculptures of Buddhas, Bodhisattvas, disciples, heavenly beings, flying beings, and worshippers with different postures have appeared. In terms of sculptural style, whether it is a Buddha, Bodhisattva, disciple, or a flying celestial being or a provider, the sculptural form has shifted from being tall and robust in the early days to being stretched and straight, the facial expression has shifted from dignified and resolute to being elegant and peaceful, and the clothing and attire have also changed from being gentle and fitting to having a hanging collar and a matching collar, with the skirt concealing the image. It is interesting that many caves often feature a combination of Hu and Han styles: sitting on either side of a Buddha wearing a round neck or a right side robe, and flying in Han attire with a broad and graceful posture, reflecting a strong sense of the changing times. This change mainly originated from the official relocation of the capital to Luoyang by Emperor Xiaowen of Northern Wei in the 18th year of Taihe (494 AD). In order to accelerate the pace of sinicization, the talented and strategic Emperor banned wearing Hu clothing, changed to Han clothing, banned the use of Hu language, changed Xianbei surnames to Han surnames, and vigorously promoted intermarriage between ethnic groups, thus re establishing the Northern Dynasty's aristocratic system. It was under the influence of this series of measures that the old customs of the Xianbei aristocracy were fundamentally changed, and ultimately the Central Plains cultural etiquette system centered on Confucianism was fully accepted and absorbed. At the same time, it also affected the Qinzhou area under the rule of Northern Wei, but due to its long-term status as the main settlement area for various ethnic groups such as Di, Qiang, Xiuguan, and Tu, this change has a slight lag. The late Northern Wei Dynasty was the peak stage of excavation in the Maijishan Grottoes, with representative niches including Caves 81, 83, 87, 121, 122, 133, 142, 154, etc. The shapes of cave niches are more complex and diverse, with many ancillary buildings such as platform bases, Buddha pedestals, shallow niches, altar platforms, etc. inside the caves, and the top has evolved from a flat square to a square bucket top. In addition to the traditional small and medium-sized niches, large caves like Cave 133 have begun to appear, with a height of 5.8 meters, a width of 12.2 meters, and a depth of 10.83 meters. The structure inside the cave is complex, with numerous Buddhist niches, rich statue content, and diverse subject combinations, forming a spectacular scene of "Buddha shadows everywhere, flying on all four walls", which is awe inspiring. Under the influence of the Longmen Grottoes and other Central Plains regions, the style of sculpture during this period has completely transformed into Han costume figures with lavish clothing: the Buddha's face is delicate and smiling, with a straight nose and small mouth, shoulder and chest are erect, wearing a wide Buddhist robe, and the train hangs in front of the Buddha's seat. The surface of the clothing is carved with sparse and strong clothing lines. Bodhisattvas tie their hair in a high bun, have a delicate face, and are often adorned with collars, ear rings, wristbands, arm bracelets, pendants, and other accessories. They wear a wide sleeved cross collar shirt on top, a waist length skirt on the bottom, high shoes on their feet, and a cross shaped or looped silk belly that touches their knees. The disciples are all dressed in robes, with facial expressions that are either innocent and naive, charming and naive, contemplative and thoughtful, or have experienced many vicissitudes. The grotto sculptures during the Western Wei and Northern Zhou dynasties were another peak in the construction of the Maijishan Grottoes. Caves excavated during this period include Caves 20, 28, 30, 43, 44, 102, 105, 123, 127, and 135. Imitation of palace style cliff pavilions has become a new trend, which may be closely related to the former Empress of Western Wei, Yifu, who became a nun in Maijishan. It is said that Cave 43 was once the tomb of this beautiful and virtuous queen. On the basis of the late Northern Wei dynasty's clear and delicate statues, Western Wei's facial expressions and figures tend to be full and upright, giving people a sense of tranquility and kindness. The costumes of the characters still retain a luxurious and extravagant style, but the texture of the clothing is heavy, the layers are clear, the lines are smooth and distinct, simple yet luxurious, and a fresh breeze hits the face. Another important feature is the emergence of Vimalakirti statues that reflect the spirit of aristocratic culture. At the same time, large-scale Buddhist story paintings with complex content, numerous characters, grand scenes, and skilled techniques began to emerge. For example, in caves 127 and 135, there are large Buddhist story paintings such as Nirvana, Western Pure Land, Vimalakirti, Hell, Suizi Bensheng, and Sacrificing oneself to Feed a Tiger, which are valuable materials for us to understand and comprehend the painting art of the Northern Dynasties in China. The Northern Zhou regime, which inherited the Western Wei dynasty, became the actual beneficiary of a series of political, economic, military, and cultural reform measures. Except for Emperor Wu Wenyong, rulers throughout history highly believed in Buddhism, which was also a key factor in the prevalence of cave carving and statue making in Maijishan during the Northern Zhou period. The imitation hall style cave reached its peak during this period, such as the fourth cave on the upper part of the eastern cliff, commonly known as the "Upper Seven Buddha Pavilion" or "Scattered Flower Tower", which is a large pavilion roof with a front porch and rear chamber, seven rooms and eight columns structure, a width of 30.48 meters, a depth of 8 meters, and a height of 16 meters. It is equipped with various building components such as flat chess, dougong, forehead lintel, tile ridge, ridge, and kiss. The back room is composed of seven ornate tent shaped niches, which are magnificent and magnificent. In addition to the traditional three Buddha statues, the seven Buddha and thousand Buddha statues are also very popular. In terms of sculptural style, "honest and simple, round and smooth" has become an important feature. The innovation of Feitian's decorative techniques is astonishing, such as the use of shallow floating sculptures on the face, hands, feet, and musical instruments of the five groups of Ji Le Feitian in the upper outer part of the rear room of the Scattered Flower Pavilion, while the hair buns, costumes, pendants, flowers, and flowing clouds are painted together seamlessly, creating vivid, lively, and joyful Buddhist holy scenes. The art of grottoes during the Sui and Tang dynasties was an important turning point in the history of the Maijishan Grottoes. Based on a comprehensive investigation and analysis of the existing niches on the cliff face of Maijishan, it can be seen that by the Northern Zhou Dynasty, there were already numerous niches on the walls, and there were almost no available positions for use. During this period, the existing caves and niches mainly include caves 5, 8, 10, 13, 24, 37, etc,