Zhou Hexuan and others rested for one night in Dunhuang County, and went straight to Mogao Grottoes early the next morning.
The open space in front of the Mogao Grottoes seems to have turned into a large construction site, with many tents set up and a lot of debris piled up. Not only that, the sandy land next to it has also been used to open up wasteland and grow vegetables, and a vegetable field has even been set up not far away.
I built a shed to raise ducks.
Zhang Daqian has moved his family here...
According to legend, in order to copy Dunhuang murals, Zhang Daqian transported various mineral pigments from India (some say Burma), and purchased daily necessities from Xining, Lanzhou and other places. He used 78 donkey carts to transport them to Dunhuang. He also invited several
The lama, who was good at making canvases, hired an army to ensure safety.
After staying in Dunhuang for two years, Zhang Daqian not only sold his antique calligraphy and paintings, but also owed a huge debt of 5,000 taels of gold.
"Stop, stop!"
As soon as Zhou Hexuan and his truck approached the Mogao Grottoes, a group of soldiers greeted them with guns drawn.
Zhou Hexuan got out of the car and shouted: "Master Jun, we are here to visit Dunhuang."
A soldier leader said sternly: "Dunhuang has been placed under military control and you are not allowed to visit and play. Now I order you to leave immediately!"
Zhou Hexuan asked with a smile: "Which army are you from? Show me the military control procedures and let me take a look."
The soldier didn't seem to want to talk nonsense. He raised his gun and said, "If you don't leave, I will shoot."
Zhou Hexuan took out two documents and said: "This is a note from the Ministry of Education and the Central Museum. We are members of the Northwest Temporary Historical and Geographic Investigation Team. Judging from your appearance, you should be the garrison in Dunhuang or Guazhou. Do you want me to go back to find you?"
Sir, what are you talking about?"
The soldier leader looked hesitant. He whispered a few words to his men, then put down his gun and shouted, "Wait a moment."
A soldier ran into the cave to report, and soon a young man came out and asked, "I am Zhang Yifan, a disciple of Mr. Daqian. Are you an inspection team sent by the Ministry of Education?"
"I am Zhou Hexuan." Zhou Hexuan said angrily.
Zhang Yifan was quite surprised and quickly clasped his fists and said: "It turns out to be Mr. Zhou, I'm rude."
Zhou Hexuan introduced everyone in his entourage, walked into the camp and said, "The conditions here are very difficult."
Zhang Yifan said: "It's definitely difficult. Even though it's just autumn, it's very cold at night. All the firewood nearby has been picked up. We have to go to the desert a hundred miles away to pick up dead wood to make a fire. Mr. Zhou, don't be unhappy.
, there are really too many bandits here, so we had to hire the army to guard it. A group of bandits came a few days ago, and they fired several volleys of guns to scare them away."
"I want to go in and have a look." Zhou Hexuan pointed at the cave and said.
"I'll take you in," Zhang Yifan asked as he walked, "Did Mr. Zhou hear any rumors?"
Zhou Hexuan asked knowingly: "Is there any?"
Zhang Yifan explained with a smile: "Someone in Guazhou learned that there was a lower layer in the Dunhuang murals, and wanted to pay to buy a copy of the scroll. The master could only politely refuse. The other party had a grudge, so he published a newspaper to smear it. It was really a villain's move."
Zhou Hexuan didn't say anything. He wanted to see the situation first before talking. The muddy lawsuit over Zhang Daqian's destruction of Dunhuang murals has been going on for decades, and it has not been concluded until the 21st century. No one can tell the truth.
Everyone was taken into a cave. The light inside was dim, and mottled murals could be vaguely seen.
Lin Fengmian came closer to examine them carefully, and said sadly: "They are all art treasures. It is a pity that they are damaged like this."
Zhang Yifan said: "Dunhuang murals are not well preserved, and many places have weathered naturally. They have also experienced the Bai Yanhu Rebellion and foreign damage, and the situation is terrible. Look at the traces of smoke on the wall of the painting, which are white Russians lighting stoves in the cave.
For Xun."
Zhou Hexuan nodded, accepting this explanation.
Some people accuse Zhang Daqian of destroying the murals with a torch. Regardless of whether it is true or not, foreigners must be at fault.
Everyone visited several caves one after another, and Zhou Hexuan suddenly said: "I want to see the places that Mr. Daqian copied."
"Please follow me." Zhang Yifan led the way.
Soon they came to a cave and everyone lit up lanterns for lighting. Xia Nai, Wu Zuoren and Lin Fengmian immediately went up to take a closer look.
"The outermost layer of the mural has been peeled off." From the perspective of an archaeologist, Xia Nai was very dissatisfied with Zhang Daqian's move.
Wu Zuoren looked at it with a magnifying glass for a while and suddenly said: "This line seems to have been recently drawn."
Lin Fengmian also came over to observe carefully and said suspiciously: "No."
"Look at the color of the paint again," Wu Zuoren said.
Lin Fengmian observed for a while, then said with a wry smile: "Mr. Daqian is very skillful."
Zhang Yifan explained with some pride: "Due to the severe weathering of the outer layer, some lines on the second floor of the mural were slightly damaged. The master and five painting monks carefully prepared the pigments, and after repeated comparisons and studies, they personally repaired the damaged parts of the mural.
If you are not the top professional scholar, you won’t be able to see it at all.”
Xia Nai said angrily: "These are all ancient relics. How can you destroy the original appearance by writing at will?"
Zhang Yifan was unhappy: "Dr. Xia's words are wrong. This is not destruction, but restoration."
Although Zhou Hexuan did not speak, his heart still favored Zhang Daqian. Just like later generations repairing the Forbidden City, antiquities also need to be maintained and repaired. You cannot let them be damaged little by little.
As long as you don't make random comparisons, it's reassuring that Zhang Daqian restored the murals himself. If it takes longer, the new paint will be mixed with the old paint, and even Wu Zuoren and others may not be able to tell.
After walking through a few more caves, Xia Nai's expression suddenly changed drastically. He pointed to a painting wall and said, "What's going on here?"
Not to mention professionals, even a layman like Zhou Hexuan discovered that a large piece of the mural was peeled off.
Zhang Yifan smiled bitterly and said: "This is really none of Mr. Daqian's business."
Zhou Hexuan said: "Who did it?"
Zhang Yifan patiently explained: "At the beginning, no one knew that some cave paintings had several layers, otherwise they would have been blown away by foreigners. Some time ago, my master and Mr. Yu Youren visited the Mogao Grottoes, and the Fifth Cavalry Division
Master Ma Chengxiang accompanied him. When he saw that there were traces of paintings on the lower level where the murals were mottled, he said to his husband: 'There must be paintings on the lower level.' Master Ma ordered his men to knock down the burned murals on the upper level with stones, and surprisingly discovered the previous layer of paintings.
Therefore, my master stayed in Mogao Grottoes to copy."
Zhou Hexuan said: "In other words, this mural was damaged by Commander Ma's soldiers?"
Zhang Yifan nodded and said: "Exactly."
"What a mess!" Xia Nai was so angry that his neck was thick. "Soldiers don't know what is good and what is good. How can Yu Youren and Zhang Daqian not be clear about it? Even if professional archaeologists are peeling off paintings, they must be considered and handled carefully.
How can we let soldiers stone us?"
Zhang Yifan said nothing, and he probably felt wronged himself.
Zhou Hexuan asked: "How many caves did the soldiers destroy?"
Zhang Yifan said: "Only this one."
"That's okay." Zhou Hexuan nodded.
At this moment, Zhou Hexuan was also very dissatisfied with Zhang Daqian and Yu Youren. These two people probably did not take the mural seriously at the beginning and allowed the soldiers to do whatever they wanted. They did not speak out until they saw the second floor of the mural.
stop.
The more caves he visited, the uglier Xia Nai's face became, because the murals in some caves were in the style of the Wei and Jin Dynasties.
According to Xia Nai's speculation, Zhang Daqian not only peeled off the severely damaged Song Dynasty murals, but also peeled off the second layer of Tang Dynasty murals. His purpose was simply to see the deeper content.
