Maijishan Grottoes

Maijishan is another famous Buddhist grotto just south of Tianshui, the hometown of Fuxi, one of the legendary founders of China. From 384AD to the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911), ancient artists built scaffolds along the cliffs and chiseled hundreds of caves out of the 142-m tall mountain. There are 194 caves with 7,200 sculptures and 1,300 sq m of murals.

The clay sculptures here display Chinese features, which are quite different from the diversified foreign styles in Dunhuang.

Legends say when the highest cave was completed, Sakyamuni arrived here to preach Buddhism and his 28 asparas (attendants) threw flower petals onto the pilgrims below. If a petal fell on someone, it meant he or she did not truly believe in Buddhism but to everyone's joy, all the petals scattered upwards toward the sky.