BUDDHIST CAVE-TEMPLES AND THE CAO FAMILY AT MOGAO KU, DUNHUANG

This paper presents the excavations made in the early 1960s to the lat e 1970s of the architectural remains in front of the Mogao Caves: thei r structure, date and method of construction, and the relationships be tween the caves and the architectural remains. Also discussed is the p resent state of the caves located to the north, which have been excava ted during the past few years although as yet no report is published. The history of the caves is then examined within the contest of Cao fa mily patronage, which provides the rationale for monumental works in n orth-western China.