Longmen Grottoes (Dragon's Gate Grottoes), one of the three well-known ancient sculptural sites in China (the other three are Mogao Caves, Yungang Grottoes and Maijishan Grottoes), is located on the banks of the Yihe River, 12 kilometers (7 miles) south of Luoyang City. Through over 400 years' working from the Northern Wei (386 - 534) until the Northern Song (960 -1127), it has over 2, 100 caves, more than 100,000 statues, some 40 pagodas and 3600 tablets and steles.
