A Revisionist Reading of the Transition of Buddhist Cave-Making from Yungang to Longmen

Katherine Renhe Tsiang

doi:10.1215/00666637-9302484

A Revisionist Reading of the Transition of Buddhist Cave-Making from Yungang to Longmen

Archives of Asian Art ◽

10.1215/00666637-9302484 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 71 (2) ◽

pp. 131-170

Author(s):

Katherine Renhe Tsiang

Keyword(s):

Comparative Analysis ◽

Visual Evidence ◽

Northern Wei ◽

Historical Transition

Abstract This study reexamines images and textual materials that can be related to the dating and iconography of caves at Yungang and Longmen and the historical transition between them. The transition is associated with the move of the Northern Wei capital from Pingcheng to Luoyang, and the beginnings of the Longmen caves is widely believed to coincide with the establishment of the capital at Luoyang in 495. Inscriptions in the Guyang Cave have been interpreted to support the widely held belief that it was created at the time of the move of the capital. Visual evidence of sculptural practice and transitions in sculptural art that can be observed broadly between caves and cave site can also be seen in micro-environments within a single cave or a single niche that offer new insights. Through comparative analysis of the caves' images and artworks found in other contexts, and their consideration in conjunction with textual materials, the author proposes a revisionist reconstruction of the early work in the Guyang Cave.

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Rotary movements and fluid membranes in termite flagellates

Journal of Cell Science ◽

10.1242/jcs.20.3.619 ◽

1976 ◽

Vol 20 (3) ◽

pp. 619-638

Author(s):

S.L. Tamm ◽

S. Tamm

Keyword(s):

Plasma Membrane ◽

Comparative Analysis ◽

Cell Membrane ◽

Shear Zone ◽

Surrounding Medium ◽

The Other ◽

Visual Evidence ◽

Fluid Membranes ◽

Internal Motor ◽

Rotary Motor

We previously described a remarkable type of cell motility that provided direct, visual evidence for the fluid nature of cell membranes. The movement involved continual, unidirectional rotation of one part of a protozoan, including the plasma membrane and cytoplasmic organelles, in relation to a neighbouring part. The cell membrane in the ‘shear zone’ appeared continuous with that of the rest of the cell. The rotary motor consisted, at least in part, of a non-contractile, microtubular axostyle which extended centrally through the cell. The protozoan was a devescovinid flagellate found in the hindgut of a Florida termite. In this paper, we have confirmed earlier reports of this type of motility in other kinds of devescovinids from Australian termites. By demonstrating continuity of the plasma membrane in the shear zone of the Australian devescovinids as well, we have obtained additional examples that provide direct, visual evidence for fluid membranes. A comparative analysis of rotational motility in various devescovinids revealed 2 different kinds of rotary mechanisms. Hyperdevescovina probably have an internal motor, in which one part of the cell exerts forces against another part, as in the Florida termite devescovinid. Devescovina species, on the other hand, have an external motor, in which flagellar and/or papillar movements exert forces against the surrounding medium. The structure of the axostyle in different devescovinids was compared, and its role in rotational motility discussed with respect to the behavioural data.

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