Bao Yu Jing Bian

Empress Wu Zetian commissioned the construction of numerous Dunhuang Mogao Caves during her reign, solidifying her imperial power. The grand Dayun Temple was built nationwide in 695, along with numerous temples in capital cities and provinces, to promote the Dayun Sutra, which portrayed her as the incarnation of Maitreya Buddha. In Cave 321, the mural Bao Yu Jing Bian depicts her as the Queen of the Eastern Sun and Moon, with her name Zhao portrayed pictorially. These murals not only hold political significance but also showcase advancements in 7th-century landscape painting. The composition features an aerial perspective, with the Buddha and his assembly at the center, while vibrant scenes unfold in distinct "micro-spaces" among the green mountains.

Tang Dynasty (618-907) Mural painting in Cave 321 of Mogao Caves in Dunhuang, Gansu Province.

This piece is compiled from the Chinese edition of Three Thousand Years of Chinese Painting by Foreign Languages Press and Yale University Press, translated by Chen Ying.