Donggar Frescos and Rutog Rock Paitings

　　The vast stretches of the Ngari Plateau were once home to the capitals of the ancient Zhangzhung and Guge kingdoms. Ngari Plateau is also the birthplace of the Bon Religion, an age-old Tibetan religion. Buddhism was passed on to hinterland Tibet via this plateau as well. During their long history, ancestors of the Tibetan ethnic group created a splendid culture and left the Ngari Plateau numerous historical treasures, including Donggar frescos and Rutog rock paintings. Donggar frescos are a recent and important archaeological discovery made by cultural heritage departments in Tibet. They are yet another form of China's cave art, and provide the missing link on the subject of ancient Buddhist cave art in western Tibet. The frescoes also provide important material for studying the history of the well-known Guge Kingdom.

　　Donggar is a small village with a dozen households in Zhada County. At the foot of a mountain and standing by a river, it is about 40 km northwest of the ruins of the Guge Kingdom. The archaeologists unearthed two grottos, one on the cliff adjacent to the Donggar Village and one in the neighboring Piyang Village. They are the largest Buddhist caves so far discovered in Tibet. Relatively well preserved Donggar frescos are concentrated in three caves half way up the mountain. There are no records of their formation in the numerous Tibetan historic, religious and cultural files, and they remain a cultural mystery that has yet to be fathomed. However, one thing is sure - the grotto frescos have a history of nearly 1,000 years and are of high archaeological and research value.

　　These frescos are well-knit, with smooth, easy lines, bright colors and unique designs. They have substantial content, including exotic figures, patterns and designs. Painted with a special mineral dye, the frescos still appear new after such a long period of time and will never fade. The major themes of the frescos include figures of Buddha and images of Bodhisattvas, protectors of Dharma, men with unnatural strength, legendary stories about Buddhism, pictures of expounding Buddhist texts, and pictures of worshipping Buddha, as well as various decorating patterns like peacocks, dragon fish, two dragons twinning, two phoenixes standing opposite each other, and the Tantric Mandala. Some of the animals in the frescos, like the dragon, phoenix, lion, horse, sheep, cattle, wild goose, duck and elephant, are not native to the Ngari Plateau. Most commonly depicted are heavenly girls in vivid and varying shapes. The Donggar frescos display a colorful and figurative universe. According to preliminary investigation, there were different types of cave groups, including caves for worshipping Buddha, caves where monks lived and caves for the storage of sundry objects. The exquisite and marvelous frescos are the remains of caves for worshipping Buddha. To protect these two places of wonder, the Donggar and Piyang grottos remain unopened to the public.

　　Rock art is a kind of stone carving culture. During the early development of human society, humans used stones as tools to describe and record their way of production and life through a simple and natural form - stone inscription. This phenomenon in early society has become precious cultural heritage left by human ancestors. Recently, a large number of rock paintings have been discovered in the Gerze, Ge'gyai and Rutog counties, which have a high elevation in western and northern Tibet. These drawings are carved on stones with hard rocks or other hard objects, making both deep and shallow lines. There are a few colorfully painted pictures. The rock paintings have a wide range of contents, including hunting, sacrificial rites, riding, domestic animal herding, and farming, as well as the sun and moon, mountains, cattle, horses, sheep, donkeys, antelopes, houses and people. Of these rock paintings, those discovered in Rutog County are most outstanding. The rock paintings at a dozen places within Rutog, including Risum Rimodong and Lorinaka are not only large in size and great in number, but are also of high artistic value.

　　Ngari was once the capital of the ancient Zhangzhung Kingdom. Zhangzhung writing was created by the ancestors of the Tibetan ethnic group and appeared before Tibetan writing. The rock paintings which appeared in the same period as Zhangzhung writing are of great significance to studies in the history, culture and early human life in Ngari and Tibet at large.