Located on the eastern slope of Rattling Sand Mountain (Mingshashan) southeast of Dunhuang County in Gansu Province, the Mogao Grottoes (also known as Thousand Buddha Cave) is one of three noted grottoes in China and also the largest, best preserved and richest treasure house of Buddhist art in the world. In 1987, UNESCO placed the Mogao Grottoes under the protection of the world cultural heritage list. Carved out of the cliffs 25 km southeast of Dunhuang, Mogao Grottoes lay at a strategic point on the ancient Silk Road, where religion, culture and commerce between East and West intersected for 1,000 years from the 4th century until the Yuan Dynasty (1271-1368). [Photo by Zhiyuan / China.org.cn]