The Shorchuk or Shikshin Temple (Uyghur: Хорчу, romanized: Xorqu; simplified Chinese: 七个星佛寺; traditional Chinese: 七個星佛寺; pinyin: Qīgèxīng Fósì; lit. 'Seven-Stars Buddhist Temple') is a ruined compound of Buddhist sites located about 25–30 km southwest of the town of Karasahr, Yanqi Hui Autonomous County, Xinjiang, China. The site was a major religious center along the northern route of the Silk Road in the second half of the first millennium CE. Another name for the site is Ming-oi (明屋, "The Thousand Houses") in Turkic.[1]
The site's Chinese name "Qigexing" has also been spelled as "Shikchin", "Shikshin", "Šikšin", "Xikeqin", or "Xigexing". The archaeologist Albert Grünwedel who worked at the site during the third German Turfan expedition (1905–1907) referred to the site as "Šorčuq"[2](derived from the Uyghur name Xorqu), this name is also sometimes spelled as Shorchuk,[3][4] "Chorchuk",[5] or "Shorchuq"[6] and may refer to salt deposits in the surrounding steppes.[2][3] The site is also referred to as "Ming oi" or "Mingoi" (明屋), a term that literally means "Thousand Dwellings" in the Uyghur language[3] and is also used for other temple sites in the region such as the Kizil Caves.
Historyedit
Map of the ruins of the Shorchuk/Qigexing site by Albert Grünwedel (1912), X: little temple, boxed X: large temple, o: stupas
In prehistory Qigexing was part of the city state of Ārśi or Agni (now known as Karasahr/Qarasheher). Ārśi is believed to have been the homeland of an extinct Indo-European language known as "Tocharian A", or Agnean, and was significant in the introduction of Buddhism to China. As late as the 6th century CE, Buddhist works and official documents were being written in Tocharian A. Ārśi was mentioned in Chinese sources, as early as the Han dynasty, as the Kingdom of Yanqi (Chinese: 焉耆; pinyin: Yanqi or Yen-ch'i – a derivative of Ārśi/Agni).
Qigexing was conquered by the Han dynasty in 94 CE, during its reconquest of the Tarim Basin. The Buddhist monk Faxian visited the area of Yanqi around 400 CE and mentions the presence of about 4,000 monks who were practicing Hinayana Buddhism.[7]
The monk Xuanzang, who lived in the 7th century CE, reports the existence of 10 Buddhist monasteries with 2,000 monks who belonged to the Sarvastivada school of Buddhism in the area around Yanqi.[7] In 644 CE, the Tang dynasty invaded and annexed Yanqi during their wars against the Western Turks, a conflict that would last until the Turks were defeated in 657 CE. Tang control of the kingdom was re-established in 648 CE when a Tang general defeated a usurper who had deposed the puppet ruler that the Tang installed four years before.[8] In 719 CE, the Tang established one of the Four Garrisons of Anxi in Yanqi, the other garrisons were in Kucha, Kashgar, and Hotan. Aurel Stein hypothesized that the Buddhist temples of Qigexing were burned during an iconoclasm after Islam became the state religion of the Kara-Khanid Khanate.[3]
Archeological finds in Qigexing include the ruins of larger temple compounds (with more than 100 buildings in total[7]) as well as twelve cave temples.[2][7] The remains of some wall paintings and in particular sculptures have been discovered at the site. Sculptures have been found as individual figures as well as in friezes. The style of the artworks mixes indo-Iranian elements with Chinese styles.[7] The depiction of human heads at the site has a characteristic style with faces that are bulged out like balloons.[7] The Qigexing site is also an important source for manuscripts written in the East Tocharian language, also known as Tocharian A or Agnean, after Agni, an ancient name for Yanqi. Of the 1150 leaves and fragments in East Tocharian that were included in a 2007 survey, 383 came from a single scriptorum in Qigexing.[4]
The site was investigated by Albert Grünwedel during the third German Turfan expedition (1905–1907),[2][9] by Aurel Stein in December 1907,[3] as well as by Sergey Oldenburg during the Russian Turkistan Expedition (1909–1910).[10]
Statue from Shikshin Temple, Nakshatra Cave, 5th-6th century CE
Statue from Shikshin Temple, Nakshatra Cave, 5th-6th century CE
A King in sculpture from Qigexing (possibly 8th century CE).
Turk soldier in armour, Shorchuk, 8th century CE.[11]
Wall painting of the Distribution of Relics, detail of the warriors Cave 11 (Grunwedel Cave 9), cave temple site, Shorchuk Ming-oi, Karashahr, Hermitage Museum.[15]
^ abcdAlbert Grünwedel: Altbuddhistische Kultstätten in Chinesisch-Turkistan, Bericht über archäologische Arbeiten von 1906 bis 1907 bei Kucha, Qarašahr und in der Oase Turfan, Berlin, 1912
^ abcdeAurel Stein: Serindia - Detailed Report of Explorations in Central Asia and Westernmost China, Oxford at the Clarendon Press, 1921
^ abHansen, Valerie (2012-07-17). The Silk Road: A New History. Oxford University Press. ISBN978-0-19-993921-3.
^Stein, M. Aurel (1912). Ruins Of Desert Cathay: personal narrative of explorations in Central Asia and westernmost China. Vol. 2. p. 365.
^Baij Nath Puri: Buddhism In Central Asia, Motilal Banarsidass Publ., 1987
^ abcdefMarianne Yaldız: Archäologie und Kunstgeschichte Chinesisch-Zentralasiens (Xinjiang), Leiden, 1987
^Wechsler, Howard J.; Twitchett, Dennis C. (1979). Denis C. Twitchett; John K. Fairbank (eds.). The Cambridge History of China, Volume 3: Sui and T'ang China, 589–906, Part I. Cambridge University Press. pp. 225–227. ISBN978-0-521-21446-9.
^Zaturpanskij, Choros (i.e. A. v. Le Coq): Reisewege und Ergebnisse der deutschen Turfanexpeditionen, Orientalisches Archiv 3, 1912, pp. 116–127
^S. F. Oldenburg: Russian Turkistan Expedition, 1909-1910, vol. 1, 1914
^G, Reza Karamian; Farrokh, Kaveh; Syvänne, Ilkka; Kubik, Adam; Czerwieniec-Ivasyk, Marta; Maksymiuk, Katarzyna. Crowns, hats, turbans and helmets The headgear in Iranian history volume I: Pre-Islamic Period Edited by Katarzyna Maksymiuk & Gholamreza Karamian Siedlce-Tehran 2017. p. 252.
^Rhie, Marylin M. (2002). Early Buddhist art of China and Central Asia. Leiden: Brill. p. Fig. 5.47n. ISBN978-90-04-11499-9.
^Rhie, Marylin M. (2002). Early Buddhist art of China and Central Asia. Leiden: Brill. p. 556, Fig. 5.47n. ISBN978-90-04-11499-9. Fig. 5.47n Warrior, from the cella (Stein xi) of F4, main temple site, Shorchuk Ming-oi, Karashahr, painted stucco, H. 42.8 em, British Museum, London (after Whitfield (1982-1985), III, color pl. 98). Page 556: The military uniformed figures in the adjacent panel are most relatable to sculptures and paintings from Shorchuk Mingo-oi (Figs. 5.47n; 5.78b) ranging from the late 5th to the 7th century. The warrior head from Shorchuk Ming-oi in Fig. 5.49c with its chubby face and subdued yet soft f ea tu res seems to relate with the heads of the warriors in this Tumshuk painting. This style does not appear to relate to the T'ang period 7th-9th century or later, where the military uniform and helmets, etc. are differently portrayed.
^Rhie, Marylin M. (2002). Early Buddhist art of China and Central Asia. Leiden: Brill. p. Fig. 5.78b. ISBN978-90-04-11499-9.
External linksedit
Along the ancient silk routes: Central Asian art from the West Berlin State Museums, an exhibition catalog from The Metropolitan Museum of Art (fully available online as PDF), which contains material from Qigexing Buddhist Temple Ruins
January 01, 1970
shikshin, temple, shorchuk, uyghur, Хорчу, romanized, xorqu, simplified, chinese, 七个星佛寺, traditional, chinese, 七個星佛寺, pinyin, qīgèxīng, fósì, seven, stars, buddhist, temple, ruined, compound, buddhist, sites, located, about, southwest, town, karasahr, yanqi, a. The Shorchuk or Shikshin Temple Uyghur Horchu romanized Xorqu simplified Chinese 七个星佛寺 traditional Chinese 七個星佛寺 pinyin Qigexing Fosi lit Seven Stars Buddhist Temple is a ruined compound of Buddhist sites located about 25 30 km southwest of the town of Karasahr Yanqi Hui Autonomous County Xinjiang China The site was a major religious center along the northern route of the Silk Road in the second half of the first millennium CE Another name for the site is Ming oi 明屋 The Thousand Houses in Turkic 1 Qigexing Buddhist Temple RuinsView of the ruinsLocation of the site in Xinjiang ChinaShow map of XinjiangShikshin Temple China Show map of ChinaLocationXinjiang ChinaCoordinates41 56 10 N 86 20 28 E 41 936 N 86 341 E 41 936 86 341Site notesConditionIn ruins Contents 1 Names 2 History 3 References 4 External linksNames edit nbsp Mural depicting a woman with funerary urn The site s Chinese name Qigexing has also been spelled as Shikchin Shikshin Siksin Xikeqin or Xigexing The archaeologist Albert Grunwedel who worked at the site during the third German Turfan expedition 1905 1907 referred to the site as Sorcuq 2 derived from the Uyghur name Xorqu this name is also sometimes spelled as Shorchuk 3 4 Chorchuk 5 or Shorchuq 6 and may refer to salt deposits in the surrounding steppes 2 3 The site is also referred to as Ming oi or Mingoi 明屋 a term that literally means Thousand Dwellings in the Uyghur language 3 and is also used for other temple sites in the region such as the Kizil Caves History edit nbsp Map of the ruins of the Shorchuk Qigexing site by Albert Grunwedel 1912 X little temple boxed X large temple o stupas In prehistory Qigexing was part of the city state of Arsi or Agni now known as Karasahr Qarasheher Arsi is believed to have been the homeland of an extinct Indo European language known as Tocharian A or Agnean and was significant in the introduction of Buddhism to China As late as the 6th century CE Buddhist works and official documents were being written in Tocharian A Arsi was mentioned in Chinese sources as early as the Han dynasty as the Kingdom of Yanqi Chinese 焉耆 pinyin Yanqi or Yen ch i a derivative of Arsi Agni Qigexing was conquered by the Han dynasty in 94 CE during its reconquest of the Tarim Basin The Buddhist monk Faxian visited the area of Yanqi around 400 CE and mentions the presence of about 4 000 monks who were practicing Hinayana Buddhism 7 The monk Xuanzang who lived in the 7th century CE reports the existence of 10 Buddhist monasteries with 2 000 monks who belonged to the Sarvastivada school of Buddhism in the area around Yanqi 7 In 644 CE the Tang dynasty invaded and annexed Yanqi during their wars against the Western Turks a conflict that would last until the Turks were defeated in 657 CE Tang control of the kingdom was re established in 648 CE when a Tang general defeated a usurper who had deposed the puppet ruler that the Tang installed four years before 8 In 719 CE the Tang established one of the Four Garrisons of Anxi in Yanqi the other garrisons were in Kucha Kashgar and Hotan Aurel Stein hypothesized that the Buddhist temples of Qigexing were burned during an iconoclasm after Islam became the state religion of the Kara Khanid Khanate 3 Archeological finds in Qigexing include the ruins of larger temple compounds with more than 100 buildings in total 7 as well as twelve cave temples 2 7 The remains of some wall paintings and in particular sculptures have been discovered at the site Sculptures have been found as individual figures as well as in friezes The style of the artworks mixes indo Iranian elements with Chinese styles 7 The depiction of human heads at the site has a characteristic style with faces that are bulged out like balloons 7 The Qigexing site is also an important source for manuscripts written in the East Tocharian language also known as Tocharian A or Agnean after Agni an ancient name for Yanqi Of the 1150 leaves and fragments in East Tocharian that were included in a 2007 survey 383 came from a single scriptorum in Qigexing 4 The site was investigated by Albert Grunwedel during the third German Turfan expedition 1905 1907 2 9 by Aurel Stein in December 1907 3 as well as by Sergey Oldenburg during the Russian Turkistan Expedition 1909 1910 10 nbsp Statue from Shikshin Temple Nakshatra Cave 5th 6th century CE nbsp Statue from Shikshin Temple Nakshatra Cave 5th 6th century CE nbsp A King in sculpture from Qigexing possibly 8th century CE nbsp Turk soldier in armour Shorchuk 8th century CE 11 nbsp Knight in armour in the Buddhist depiction of the War of the Relics Shorchuk Karashahr 8th century CE 12 nbsp Soldier cast made from molds from Shorchuk Volkerkunde Museum Berlin nbsp Soldier mold Shorchuk Volkerkunde Museum Berlin nbsp Shorchuk warrior statuette of a Central Asian soldier late 5th 7th century 13 14 nbsp Shorchuk soldier statuette Tang dynasty 6th 7th century nbsp Wall painting of the Distribution of Relics detail of the warriors Cave 11 Grunwedel Cave 9 cave temple site Shorchuk Ming oi Karashahr Hermitage Museum 15 References edit British Museum www britishmuseum org a b c d Albert Grunwedel Altbuddhistische Kultstatten in Chinesisch Turkistan Bericht uber archaologische Arbeiten von 1906 bis 1907 bei Kucha Qarasahr und in der Oase Turfan Berlin 1912 a b c d e Aurel Stein Serindia Detailed Report of Explorations in Central Asia and Westernmost China Oxford at the Clarendon Press 1921 a b Hansen Valerie 2012 07 17 The Silk Road A New History Oxford University Press ISBN 978 0 19 993921 3 Stein M Aurel 1912 Ruins Of Desert Cathay personal narrative of explorations in Central Asia and westernmost China Vol 2 p 365 Baij Nath Puri Buddhism In Central Asia Motilal Banarsidass Publ 1987 a b c d e f Marianne Yaldiz Archaologie und Kunstgeschichte Chinesisch Zentralasiens Xinjiang Leiden 1987 Wechsler Howard J Twitchett Dennis C 1979 Denis C Twitchett John K Fairbank eds The Cambridge History of China Volume 3 Sui and T ang China 589 906 Part I Cambridge University Press pp 225 227 ISBN 978 0 521 21446 9 Zaturpanskij Choros i e A v Le Coq Reisewege und Ergebnisse der deutschen Turfanexpeditionen Orientalisches Archiv 3 1912 pp 116 127 S F Oldenburg Russian Turkistan Expedition 1909 1910 vol 1 1914 G Reza Karamian Farrokh Kaveh Syvanne Ilkka Kubik Adam Czerwieniec Ivasyk Marta Maksymiuk Katarzyna Crowns hats turbans and helmets The headgear in Iranian history volume I Pre Islamic Period Edited by Katarzyna Maksymiuk amp Gholamreza Karamian Siedlce Tehran 2017 p 252 Rhie Marylin M 2002 Early Buddhist art of China and Central Asia Leiden Brill p Fig 5 47n ISBN 978 90 04 11499 9 British Museum The British Museum Rhie Marylin M 2002 Early Buddhist art of China and Central Asia Leiden Brill p 556 Fig 5 47n ISBN 978 90 04 11499 9 Fig 5 47n Warrior from the cella Stein xi of F4 main temple site Shorchuk Ming oi Karashahr painted stucco H 42 8 em British Museum London after Whitfield 1982 1985 III color pl 98 Page 556 The military uniformed figures in the adjacent panel are most relatable to sculptures and paintings from Shorchuk Mingo oi Figs 5 47n 5 78b ranging from the late 5th to the 7th century The warrior head from Shorchuk Ming oi in Fig 5 49c with its chubby face and subdued yet soft f ea tu res seems to relate with the heads of the warriors in this Tumshuk painting This style does not appear to relate to the T ang period 7th 9th century or later where the military uniform and helmets etc are differently portrayed Rhie Marylin M 2002 Early Buddhist art of China and Central Asia Leiden Brill p Fig 5 78b ISBN 978 90 04 11499 9 External links editAlong the ancient silk routes Central Asian art from the West Berlin State Museums an exhibition catalog from The Metropolitan Museum of Art fully available online as PDF which contains material from Qigexing Buddhist Temple Ruins Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Shikshin Temple amp oldid 1216894033, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
