Some 30 frescoes, which were drawn in the Tang Dynasty some
1,400 years ago, have recently been restored and displayed their
true features, thanks to the efforts made by some Chinese and
Japanese experts.
Although these frescoes covered an area of only 10 square
meters, it took the experts two years to restore them.
Zhang Yuzhong, a researcher from the Xinjiang Cultural Relics
and Archeological Research Institute, said that in order to repair
these frescoes, experts from China and Japan had applied
restoration methods used in France, Japan and China. With a careful
selection of materials, experts tried to restore the frescoes to
their original conditions by using different methods such as
fixing, solidifying and revamping. These frescoes are now kept in
the Xingjiang Cultural Relic and Archeology Research
Institute.
Zhang first discovered the frescoes in October 2002, when he led
a team of Chinese and Japanese experts to conduct research at the
Dandanwulike Relic. They noticed part of the frescoes exposed
outside in a temple and took off the fresco and shipped them back
to Urumqi. This is the first time that Chinese archeologists
carried an excavation at the Dandanwulike Relic.
Since the frescoes were drawn on a wall surface made of mud and
grass, they could have fallen off easily. In the eastern part,
since the wall have fallen off in an outward direction, the
frescoes there had remained in a good condition. The pictures drawn
on the frescoes were either Buddhist images or depicted Buddhist
stories. For the rest part, the walls had already fallen off either
inside or outside. At some part, the frescoes had piled up. The
remaining frescoes were discovered mostly at the northern, southern
and western sides of the wall.
After making a comparison, experts found that the restored
frescoes discovered in Xingjiang were different from those kept in
the Indian Art Museum in Berlin, Germany, and those kept in the
British Museum in regard to style, color and pattern. The contents
of the frescoes indicated that they were drawn in the early Tang
Dynasty, or in the late seventh century.
(Chinanews.cn August 4, 2006)
