Mati Temple is located at the foot of Linsong Mountain, which is about 80 km away from the South Yugur Minority Autonomous County of Gansu Province. The temple was built in the Jin Dynasty.
Mati Temple has gathered the culture, the landscape, and the religious together. A series of horse shoe prints are visible there. It is said that several horses left their footprints there when drinking water. As a result, the temple was named for the horseshoe prints, which are the treasure of the temple.
Mati Temple can be divided into North Temple, South Temple, Thousand Buddha Cave, Golden Pagoda Temple, Upper/Middle/Lower Avalokitesvara Caves and so on. Because the mountain was formed by coarse red sandstone which was not suitable for carving, most of the grottoes are clay sculptures.
Known for its charming landscape and cut between the cliffs, it is a good place to admire grottoes buildings, murals, Buddha statue and other ancient relics. Due to its long history and important culture meanings, it ranks of one of the top three Hexi Buddhism culture grottoes in China, with the valuable position of Mogao Grottoes in Dunhuang and Yulin Grottoes in Anxi.
Opening Hours: 08:00 - 18:00
Recommended Time for a Visit: Three hours
Type: Culture
Location：Sunanyuguzu Autonomous county, Zhangye City, Gansu Province, China
Transportation:
1.Since the temple locates in the mountain, it’s convenient to rent a car.
2. From the Zhangye Nan Bus Station, you can take the special shuttle bus to the Footprint Temple. The driving time will be 1-2 hours. The bus time is on 7:25, 8:25, 9:25, 16:30 everyday. You can also take this bus back. The last return bus is on 16:30.
Tips:
During the visit in the temple, please obey the Buddha religious customs.