Dunhuang Academy's protection team work to ensure relics not lost to sands of time

In the past five years, Dunhuang art exhibitions have been held in dozens of locations both domestically and internationally, leaving a mark in countries such as the United Kingdom, Germany and Austria.

Enduring more than 1,600 years, the allure of the Mogao Grottoes remains, thanks to efforts made through generations. However, during the restoration and protection process, Su's team has encountered many challenges such as those found in the murals in Cave 85.

Su said that murals typically consist of three layers — a support layer, a ground layer and a pigment layer. Cave 85's 110 sq m of murals exhibit three typical diseases of the Mogao Grottoes — flaking, detachment and efflorescence.

He said that these issues are caused by soluble salts within the murals. As temperature and humidity fluctuate, these salts continuously crystallize and exude through the murals, leading to their gradual deterioration.

"At first, after analysis and research in Cave 85, the conclusion was that the problems were unsolvable at that time," Su said.

To find solutions, the cultural relics protection team, in collaboration with experts from the Getty Conservation Institute in the United States, attempted to relocate the soluble salts to the surface and then desalinate them through injection.