Mogao Cave 329

Mogao Cave 329 was built in early Tang Dynasty(618-704AD). This cave has a square main hall and a truncated pyramidal ceiling in shape. The ceiling center features a motif of the lotuses and apsarasas encircled by patterns of curving tendrils, linked pearls, and draperies.
On the four slopes are motifs of thousand-Buddha images arranged in rows. The ceiling of the west niche represents two narrative stories from Buddha's life the Conception and the Great Departure, in which the celestial beings riding a dragon and a tiger respectively lead in the front, and gods of thunder and wind and other deities guard in the back. On the north wall are the illustrations of Sutra of Mediation on Maitreya Bodhisanva's Rebirth on High (in the Tusita Heaven) and Below (in Ketumati). The former is a description of all kinds of miracles presented by Maitreya when he was a Bodhisauva in the Tusita Heaven, and the latter is about the Three Assemblies of Maitreya in the future. the murals of the Bndhisatrvas in the blank space on either side of the scene were taken away by the American Landon Warner in 1924.
The female donor figure on the south side of the entrance wall, who wears a tight-sleeved shirt and long skirt with flowers in hands, is a masterpiece of the Early Tang donor figures.