There are as many as 100,000 statues carved out of the hard limestone cliffs.
The Longmen Grottoes lie 12 km south of the historic Chinese city of Luoyang.
It is here that the easily worked limestone was carved to produce the Longmen Grottoes.
The most intensive period of carving dates from the end of the 5th century to the mid-8th century.
Some of the largest statues were carved during the Tang dynasty.
Today, the Longmen Grottoes are a protected site.
In 2000, it was inscribed upon the UNESCO World Heritage List.
