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The Impact of Buddhism on Chinese Ancient Sculpture
Buddhism spread rapidly during the war-ravaged period of the Wei, Jin and Northern and Southern Dynasties. The common people sought relief from their sufferings by praying for Buddha’s help, while their ruler used Buddhism to benumb the minds of the people and avert revolt
Pottery Sculpture: Bronze Ware
The apearance of pottery in primitive society not only promoted and enriched the economic life of the people of remote antiquity, but also gave free rein to man’s natural aesthetic ipulse. The pottery and porcelain products of this period are the best manifestation of this. The statues of goddesses and pottery sculptures of fertility symbols discovered in Linyuan County, Liaoning Province, show that primitive sculpture had reached a quite high level.
Maijishan Grottoes in Gansu
The Maijishan Grottoes (麦积山石窟) are a series of 194 caves cut in the side of the hill of Majishan in Tianshui, Gansu Province, northwest China. This example of rock cut architecture contains over 7,200 Buddhist sculptures and over 1,000 square meters of murals. Construction began in the Later Qin era (384-417 CE).
Bamboo Carving
Bamboo, together with pine and plum, is known as one of the "three good friends in the cold years" and has always been popular among people, including poets, artists and craftsmen. The common bamboo possesses a sense of transcendent beauty, and collecting bamboo carvings has been a hobby for many Chinese people for a long time.
Yueqing Boxwood Carving
Yueqing, the cradle of boxwood carving, is located on the southeast coast of Zhejiang Province, East China. Yueqing boxwood carving ranks alongside Dongyang wood carving and Qingtian stone carving as one of the top three carving arts of Zhejiang. This craft has also spread to surrounding areas like Wenzhou, Yongjia, Hangzhou and Shanghai.
Ningbo Cinnabar and Gold Lacquer Woodcarving
Ningbo cinnabar and gold lacquer woodcarving is an ancient architectural decorative art featuring wood carvings ground with red paint and decorated with goldleaf and is magnificent and dazzling. This craft originated in Ningbo City, Zhejiang Province, and has spread to the surrounding areas.
Chaozhou Woodcarving
Chaozhou wood carving spread over Chaoshan in South China's Guangdong Province and is popular in cities like Chao'an, Jieyang, Chaoyang, Puning, and Raoping, all of which were in ancient Chaozhou prefecture. Because of this, the style of carving was called Chaozhou Woodcarving.
Linxia Brick Carving
About 130 kilometers southwest of Lanzhou lies the famous, ancient county of Linxia - the "Land Port of Gansu". Linxia stands on the bank of the lower reaches of the Daxia River, since the river is its neighbor, the town is called lin (neighbor) to the xia which refers to the Daxia River.
Huizhou Three Carvings
The three most famous caving styles in Huizhuo are, brick, stone, and wood carving. The three carvings originated in Song Dynasty and reached their peak in Ming and Qing Dynasty. The carvings are mainly used as decorations for civil residences, ancestral temples, arches and handicrafts like furniture, shelters, pencil vases and etc.
Hui'an Stone Carving
Hui'an Stone Carving is a traditional carving art using petrous bluestone that is mainly found in Hui'an County in the Quanzhou area of Fujian Province. Hui'an teems with blue stones that stonemasons use to make sculptures for decorating temples and other constructions.