Page 555 - The Golden Age of Chinese Archaeology: Celebrated Discoveries from the People’s Republic of China

the tunnel outside the stone door of the antechamber; inscriptions on the steles record "the
delivery of the True Relics from Qiyang during the Xiantong era of the Tang dynasty/' and "a list
of offerings, gold and silver treasures, and garments accompanying the True Relics." The stone
door of the antechamber was carved with the images of the Buddha and guardians; a square
pagoda made of painted white marble, guarded by a pair of stone lions, was placed in the cen-
ter of the antechamber. Inside the marble pagoda, a square copper pagoda contained a gilt-
silver coffin within which the Buddha's fingerbone was enshrined. The antechamber also
contained stone caskets, bronze ceremonial staffs, white porcelain vases, and two packages of
silk garments. The doors to the crypt's middle chamber were carved with reliefs oflokapalas; a
white marble lingzhang pagoda in the center of the chamber contained an iron casket with a
luding cover, and a gilt-silver coffin decorated with a pair of phoenixes, which contained second
relic of the Buddha's fingerbone. In front of the lingzhang was a bronze incense burner, flanked
by two polychrome stone lokapala figures. The middle chamber also contained a bodhisattva
image which held the relic, "secret color" (mi se) celadon wares, lacquered boxes, and many
silk textiles. The nearly square rear chamber, a carefully designed structure with an octagonal

ceiling well and stone doors, contained a reliquary (comprising eight nested cases) wrapped
in red brocade, with gilt bodhisattva image on its top. It was placed in the center of the cham-
ber. The outermost case of the reliquary, made of black lacqured wood has silver fittings,
and a luding cover; gold and polychrome carvings on the four sides depict the themes of the
Buddha's preaching, Paradise, and homage to the Buddha. The other seven layers from outer
to innermost are as follows: a gilt-silver case decorated with four lokapala figures; a plain silver
case; a gilt-silver case with images of the seated Buddha; a gold case featuring a six-armed
Avalokitesvara; a gold case inlaid with precious stones and pearls; a wufu stone case with pre-
cious stones and pearls inlaid in gold frames; and finally a gold pagoda with single eaves, four
doors, and a pearl top, which enshrines the Buddha's fingerbone. Directly in front of the reli-
quary was a silver incense burner resting on a stand. Four Arghya ewers with vajra motifs were
placed in the four corners of the rear chamber. Other items, piled in two layers in the rear
chamber, included objects of gold, silver, and glass, and silk garments. A pit measuring 0.65
square meters and 0.5 meters deep was dug to the north of the rear chamber; a bricked-up
square niche at the northern end of the pit contained an iron case, which in turn contained
a silver luding covered case, a sandalwood case with silver fittings, a crystal outer coffin inlaid
with precious stones, and finally a jade inner coffin in which the third of the fingerbone relics
was placed. 11
The subterranean palace at the Famen Monastery has yielded 121 gold and silver objects,

8 bronzes, 16 pieces of porcelain, 20 glass dishes, 12 stone objects, and an abundance of woven
silk fabric. The stele records 2,499 pieces of treasure in the crypt, although this claim is not
borne out by the objects recovered. The finds from the crypt, however, are extraordinary, both
in quantity and quality, and surpass all known foundation deposits. Particularly notable are the

554 | XU PING FANG