Open Collections

Transformation tableau of Kṣitigarbha and the Ten Kings of the Underworld (地藏十王經變), Niche 56, the southern cliff (南岩), Yuanjue Cave (圓覺洞)

From the Ground Up: Buddhism & East Asian Religions (FROGBEAR Project)

Niche 56 is located in the southern cliff (南岩) of Yuanjue Cave Cliff Sculpture Scenic Area (圓覺洞摩崖造像風景區), Yujishan (雲居山), situated in the northeast of Anyue County (安岳縣), Ziyang City (資陽巿), Sichuan. The southern cliff contains fifty-eight niches (Niches 15 to 72) of rock carvings, mostly dating from the Tang Dynasty 唐 (618-907) to the Five Dynasties 五代 (907-960). The images in this niche are severely eroded. The central wall depicts Kṣitigarbha (Dicang 地藏) with a circular halo, wearing a hood and sitting on a throne in a Lalitasana position. His left hand is placed in front of his belly, holding a pearl, and the right hand carries a staff. Traces of a beast are found on the right side under the throne, and a small standing figure is on the left side. The square stele under Kṣitigarbha contains inscriptions indicating that this is a transformation tableau. The inscription contains information on donors and the purposes of constructing this niche. However, most of the original characters are faded, and words carved by visitors have damaged the stele. Two layers of seated images, eight on each side of Kṣitigarbha, are depicted. Images on the lower layer are sitting with desks before them. Since they are badly eroded, their identities are uncertain. The bottom part of this niche depicts scenes of hell. The images on the bottom left are better preserved, showing demons punishing sinners, surrounded by monsters and iron dogs. Source: Lei Yuhua 雷玉華, Wang Jianping 王劍平, Lu Yinke 盧引科, Fu Chengjin 付成金, Liu Jian 劉健, and Li Chongfeng 李崇峰. " Sichuan Anyue xian Yuanjuedong moya shike zaoxiang diaocha baogao 四川安岳縣圓覺洞摩崖石刻造像調查報告 [The Investigation Report of Yuanjue Cave Cliff Sculptures, Anyue, Sichuan]." Nanfang minzu kaogu 南方民族考古 (2013): 416-19. Descriptions of the photos: Overview of the niche [Image 01]. Close-up of the hell scene [Image 02, Image 03]. Metadata created by: Sau Ling Wendy Yu.

Anyue (China); Sichuan (China); 30.11723; 105.3504

chi

Cluster 3.4: Typologies of Text-Image Relations

Vancouver : University of British Columbia Library

10.14288/1.0438598

Non UBC

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