Chinanews, Lanzhou, September 30 – Archeologists found many frescos with bamboo as their theme in Mogao Grottos in Dunhuang, Gansu Province, recently. The style of these frescos suggests that they could be products before the Tang Dynasty, which brought the history of China’s bamboo art forward by at least 300 years.

 

Bamboo has been a major subject of traditional Chinese painting for more than 1,000 years. It is generally believed that this tradition started in the Tang Dynasty. However, the earliest bamboo-related frescos found in the Mogao Grottos should belong to the Northern Wei Dynasty, judging from their style.

 

Besides the bamboo-related frescos of the Northern Wei Dynasty, archeologists also found some other such frescos of the Northern Zhou and Sui dynasties.