A cliff-hanging complex of temples Oct 19, 2020

A cliff-hanging complex of temples

Feast your eyes on the colorful Mati Si (Horse"s Hoof Temple) and its cliffside complex of sandstone grottoes and wooden pavilions. An indentation in the sandstone provides a clue to the mythical origin of the temple. One legend has it that a frightened longma—a winged dragon horse—visited here thousands of years ago and left its hoof mark in the rock as it landed. What you can"t see in our homepage image is the narrow network of tunnels cut into the cliff, connecting the seven floors and multiple grottoes to the Mati Si pagoda, which is 200 feet high and holds hundreds of Buddha statues.

© Ana Flašker/Alamy

palette

Today in History

Oct 19, 2018Portland celebrates its bounty
Oct 19, 2021These laurels are hardy
Oct 19, 2022Wartburg Castle overlooking Thuringian Forest in Germany
Oct 19, 2023Mekong River Delta, Long An, Vietnam
Oct 19, 2024International Archaeology Day
Oct 19, 2025Apples ready for harvest in Minnesota

More Desktop Wallpapers:

Apr 8, 2024Total solar eclipse
Dec 28, 2018A species no longer at risk
Nov 18, 2021Bohemian Switzerland
May 28, 2024The Monastery of Roussanou, Greece
Mar 24, 2025African bush elephants in Namibia
Apr 5, 2019A day of death and rebirth
Apr 10, 2022Siblings Day
May 9, 2022Göreme, Cappadocia, Turkey
Nov 14, 2021First Cliff Walk
Aug 20, 2023International Lighthouse Weekend
May 18, 2024International Museum Day
Feb 22, 2019A rest stop for the birds
Oct 31, 2022Wychwood Forest, Oxfordshire, England
Dec 1, 2021Antarctica Day
Sep 27, 2025Astronomy Day and National Public Lands Day
Nov 13, 2025Quiver trees, Keetmanshoop, Namibia
Oct 1, 2023Lake Bled, Slovenia
Apr 15, 2022World Art Day
Sep 10, 2020Hidden beauty in Thailand
Dec 16, 2023Guild houses of Grand-Place, Brussels, Belgium
Feb 22, 2025Gateway Arch in St. Louis, Missouri
Sep 25, 2020One for the books
May 30, 2021Who s hiding in the kelp?
Apr 17, 2021A river runs through it
Feb 3, 2020The moai you know
Jan 7, 2021Of balloons and lost pantaloons
Apr 26, 2019Happy Arbor Day!
Jun 19, 2025Happy Juneteenth!
Apr 7, 2022Málaga, Spain
Nov 22, 2021Irohazaka road