Kizil Caves

Kizil Caves Located in Kizil Township of Baicheng County and 67 kilometers away from Kucha, the caves were excavated on the cliff of Qul-tagh Moutain by the Muzart River. The listed 236 caves can be divided into four parts: west of the valley, inner valley, east of the valley and back mountain. The earliest caves might be excavated in the Eastern Han Dynasty and the Southern and Northern Dynasties was prosperous period, the latter ones belong to the Tang Dynasty. The shape of caves and the murals inside all have a vivid style of ancient Qiuci area. But there are only over 80 caves which have the murals well preserved, about 10,000 square meters. The contents of these paintings are very rich, including jataka stories, Budda’s life story and the stories about Karma. As the earliest caves in Xinjiang, they are also the earliest ones in China, listed one of the four biggest caves of the country. Now they are historical monuments and cultural relics under state protection.