Digital drive opens more doors to grottoes

As a major cultural and tourist destination, Dunhuang's Mogao Caves suffer from what many other attractions will envy - too many visitors.

The crowds heading to the iconic repositories of ancient Buddhist art constantly threaten the fragile cliff-side environment on the fringe of the Silk Road oasis, according to Zhao Shengliang, director of the Dunhuang Academy, which manages and studies the site and its relics.

To mitigate the impact of human activity on the grottoes in Gansu province, which face the Gobi Desert, the academy has sets limits on visitor numbers. Two ticket categories are sold every day. The first type is limited to 6,000 tickets and allows holders to access eight of the 492 grottoes containing major Buddhist art, while the second category allows up to 12,000 visitors to enter four of the caves. More than 100 of the caves at the UNESCO World Heritage Site are suitable for public access on a rotational basis as part of conservation measures.