﻿ARCHEOLOGY 
  IN 
  CHINA 
  LIANG 
  457 
  

  

  Ch'ing 
  dynasty 
  (1750) 
  are 
  still 
  kept 
  in 
  Kiio 
  Tzu 
  Chien. 
  So 
  much 
  

   for 
  Confucian 
  classics. 
  

  

  As 
  for 
  Buddhistic 
  sutras, 
  many 
  of 
  them 
  are 
  inscribed 
  on 
  cliffs 
  in 
  

   the 
  Provinces 
  of 
  Shantung 
  and 
  Honan. 
  A 
  large 
  existing 
  number 
  

   of 
  sutras 
  are 
  found 
  in 
  a 
  mountain 
  about 
  70 
  li 
  northwest 
  of 
  Peking, 
  

   called 
  Ta 
  Fang 
  Shan, 
  which 
  has 
  7 
  caves 
  where 
  5,000 
  Buddhistic 
  

   sutras 
  are 
  inscribed 
  on 
  2,300 
  large 
  stones. 
  The 
  work 
  began 
  during 
  

   the 
  North 
  Chih 
  dynasty 
  and 
  was 
  not 
  brought 
  to 
  completion 
  until 
  

   the 
  Liao 
  dynasty. 
  Altogether 
  700 
  years 
  were 
  spent 
  on 
  this 
  gigantic 
  

   piece 
  of 
  work. 
  

  

  Besides 
  the 
  stone 
  classics, 
  there 
  are 
  tablets 
  recording 
  the 
  achieve- 
  

   ments 
  of 
  a 
  certain 
  period 
  or 
  commemorating 
  certain 
  great 
  archi- 
  

   tectural 
  undertakings 
  or 
  the 
  achievements 
  of 
  certain 
  individuals. 
  

   Sometimes 
  these 
  tablets 
  are 
  placed 
  inside 
  a 
  pavilion. 
  Sometimes 
  

   they 
  are 
  placed 
  in 
  the 
  courtyard 
  of 
  large 
  buildings 
  or 
  other 
  places. 
  

  

  Grawe 
  tablets. 
  — 
  They 
  are 
  buried 
  in 
  a 
  tomb 
  and 
  contain 
  a 
  record 
  of 
  

   the 
  career 
  of 
  the 
  deceased 
  and 
  his 
  achievements. 
  

  

  Sculpture. 
  — 
  Sculpture 
  flourished 
  in 
  the 
  Six 
  Dynasties 
  and 
  the 
  

   dynasties 
  of 
  Sui 
  and 
  Tang 
  (third 
  to 
  sixth 
  centuries) 
  ; 
  Buddhism 
  

   was 
  then 
  at 
  its 
  height, 
  and 
  so 
  the 
  practice 
  of 
  making 
  Buddhistic 
  

   images 
  became 
  very 
  common. 
  We 
  have 
  a 
  number 
  of 
  these 
  images 
  

   handed 
  down 
  to 
  us. 
  

  

  Stone 
  carvings. 
  — 
  Stone 
  carvings 
  are 
  found 
  sometimes 
  in 
  large 
  

   buildings, 
  sometimes 
  inside 
  the 
  graves, 
  and 
  sometimes 
  beneath 
  

   bridges. 
  Generally 
  they 
  tell 
  a 
  story 
  and 
  in 
  some 
  cases 
  have 
  also 
  

   conventional 
  designs 
  of 
  different 
  kinds 
  which 
  are 
  symbolical. 
  

  

  The 
  above 
  are 
  the 
  five 
  principal 
  tj^pes. 
  There 
  are 
  stone 
  inscrip- 
  

   tions 
  of 
  various 
  other 
  kinds, 
  carvings 
  on 
  walls 
  or 
  bridges, 
  which 
  

   have 
  come 
  down 
  to 
  us. 
  But 
  of 
  the 
  five 
  principal 
  types 
  of 
  stone 
  in- 
  

   scriptions, 
  grave 
  tablets 
  with 
  epitaphs 
  and 
  stone 
  sculptures 
  are 
  the 
  

   most 
  numerous. 
  

  

  As 
  grave 
  tablets 
  are 
  buried 
  in 
  the 
  graves, 
  every 
  year 
  sees 
  more 
  

   and 
  more 
  of 
  them 
  come 
  to 
  light, 
  although 
  we 
  have 
  at 
  present 
  no 
  

   statistics 
  of 
  the 
  findings. 
  And 
  while 
  it 
  is 
  possible 
  that 
  those 
  that 
  

   have 
  been 
  yielded 
  from 
  the 
  soil 
  may 
  have 
  been 
  lost, 
  the 
  new 
  findings 
  

   more 
  than 
  compensate 
  for 
  the 
  losses. 
  Again, 
  sculptures, 
  carved 
  as 
  

   they 
  are 
  on 
  the 
  cliffs, 
  are 
  not 
  easily 
  damaged, 
  and 
  so 
  many 
  of 
  them 
  

   have 
  come 
  down 
  to 
  us 
  more 
  or 
  less 
  intact. 
  

  

  Of 
  all 
  these 
  carvings 
  or 
  inscriptions 
  there 
  are 
  rubbings, 
  so 
  that 
  a 
  

   scholar 
  can, 
  in 
  the 
  seclusion 
  of 
  his 
  study, 
  collect 
  these 
  inscriptions. 
  

   The 
  study 
  of 
  this 
  subject 
  is 
  thus 
  rendered 
  easy. 
  

  

  The 
  results 
  of 
  the 
  researches 
  of 
  these 
  scholars 
  are 
  as 
  follows 
  : 
  

  

  Every 
  period 
  or 
  dynasty 
  possesses 
  stone 
  inscriptions 
  which 
  throw 
  

   a 
  flood 
  of 
  light 
  on 
  the 
  cultural 
  changes 
  of 
  Chinese 
  history. 
  Besides, 
  

  

  