Symbolic building of Mogao Grottoes closed for renovation   

敦煌莫高窟封閉修繕標志性建筑“九層樓”

敦煌研究院披露，莫高窟標志性建筑之一的96窟——九層樓大佛殿正在進行文物保護維修工程，封閉施工期間，暫停對外開放。

Gansu (CNS) — The Nine-Storey Building, a symbolic structure in the No. 96 Cave of Mogao Grottoes, is closed for renovation and will not be open to the public during the renovation.

The building, originally built in the early Tang Dynasty, only had four stories and underwent many times of damage and reconstruction. The current building, built in 1935, has undergone five previous renovations.

Heavy precipitation in 2011 led to a leakage between the cliff and the building, and part of the building is now in a dilapidated condition due to lack of repair over the years, said Wang Xudong, executive vice president of the Dunhuang Research Academy.

The total investment of the renovation is over 5 million yuan.

"The renovation will neither seek to alter the original condition of cultural relics, nor to retain its dilapidated condition," said Wang. "Instead, it intends to restore the building to its historic outlook and maintain its stable and firm condition for a longer time via technical means."

During the renovation, an overall assessment of the Maitreya Buddha Statue in the building will also be made, and a follow-up preservation plan based on the assessment will be worked out, Wang said.

The Nine-Storey Building, whose central part reaches the peak of the cliff, is a wooden structure built during the Republic of China era and has a history of about 80 years.