I am delighted to announce formation of The Friends of Dunhuang, an international membership organization dedicated to safeguarding the incomparable Mogao grottoes, which for 17 centuries have inspired and astounded travelers along the Silk Road.

Long protected by the arid environment and its remote location, Mogao is a treasure house of art that records a millennium of cultural interchange between China and the West. Today this UNESCO World Heritage Site is being loved—and threatened—by the more than 550,000 visitors who each year come to experience its timeless beauty in the desert outside Dunhuang. Resultant temperature, humidity and CO₂ fluctuations are degrading the murals’ pigments, flaking their surfaces and crumbling their foundations at an alarming rate. The monumental job of protecting Mogao, while providing greater access for travelers eager to experience it, is a challenge we share with friends from around the world.

The Dunhuang Academy, custodian of the site, has launched a series of initiatives in the most significant period of growth since its founding in 1944. We will soon break ground on a new Visitor Center to educate and inspire the traveling public. To protect the grottoes against further deterioration, we are pioneering advanced conservation techniques in partnership with the Getty Conservation Institute. We have launched a Digital Dunhuang initiative to create a permanent archive of Dunhuang art, enabling visitors to experience Mogao’s splendors in vibrant color and unsurpassed detail.

If you have not yet visited Mogao, please plan on joining the Friends of Dunhuang when they explore its hidden treasures. If you are a Silk Road veteran, we welcome your return visit and hope it will rejuvenate and uplift your spirit.

Our circle of friends continues to grow and this year we are thrilled to announce creation of an International Advisory Board for the Friends of Dunhuang. With their help and yours, I am confident Dunhuang will continue to thrive for many centuries to come.

Fan Jinshi, Director, Dunhuang Academy