數字化時代的敦煌壁畫圖像研究 - 以莫高窟第72窟北壁彌勒經變為例=The Study of Dunhuang Murals in the Digital Age - Taking the Maitreya Illustration on the North Wall in Mogao Cave 72 as a Case Study
A close examination of the newly obtained digital images of the Maitreya illustration on the north wall in Mogao cave 72 suggests that most of the scenes and inscriptions can be successfully identified with the aid of new digital technology. By transcribing the inscriptions and texts accompanying the sutra illustration and comparing them with the pictorial representations, the author confirms that the illustration was painted mainly according to the Sutra of Meditation on Maitreya Bodhisattva’s Rebirth Below in Ketumati translated by Yi Jing. Besides this primary model, the illustration absorbed material from a few earlier translated versions of the same sutra and even borrowed from a few sutras that have nothing to do with Maitreya at all. This study allows us to gain a more accurate picture of this illustration and is an excellent example of how research technology innovations can prove effective in the study of ancient history.
