Jinchuanwan Grotto
In the year 2006 the Jinchuanwan Grotto in the village of the same name (100 km north west of Xi'an) was incorporated into the China-Project as a new research topic in the co-operation with subproject with the Research Insitiute for the Preservaton of Cultural Heritage of Shaanxi Province. The grotto is a stone chamber measuring 7 x 5 m, with an almost rectangular ground plan and a flat ceiling. It dates to the 7th century and is remarkable because of the Buddhist texts (sutras) covering the side walls. Over 60,000 characters are still well-preserved. The texts in the Jinchuanwan Grotto are of special historical interest since they originate from Xinxing (540-594), who established a new school of Buddhism. Only here three long sutras of this doctrine still exist.
The main research subjects were the art historical placement of the grotto and its conservation. After extensive stone examinations and consolidation tests in the laboratory, the silicic acid ester emulsion KSE OH by Remmers was recommended as a consolidant for the Buddha statue and a stone consolidation material, also based on KSE, was developed. The restoration of the grotto was carried out during a work stay in 2012 in co-operation with the Chinese colleagues in Jinchuanwan.
Dr. Mathias Kocher (2007-2013)
Dr. Zhao Zhou, Institute for East Asian Art History, Ruprecht-Karls-University Heidelberg