According to Huanqiu, the Longmen Grottoes in Luoyang, Henan, have pursued millimeter-precision restoration using laser point-cloud scanning and 3D modeling. Damaged Buddha statues are reproduced via 3D printing, restoring their form while preserving the originals.

A digital-twin platform recreates the core area and surrounding wide environment in virtual space, allowing 360-degree viewing of exquisite carvings. The lotus pattern on the ceiling of the Binyang Middle Cave was restored to its look 'before the makeup came off' through the combined use of several technologies.

AI stitching together the patterns of time

AI uses training data to fill in broken, faded motifs, estimating and reproducing the original silk and lotus patterns. Tracing lost color and texture goes beyond simple replication—it is a process of re-reading the aesthetic the relics hold, Huanqiu reported.

Such digital preservation can serve research, exhibition and education without harming the physical works. Visitors can examine in high resolution the cave interiors that are otherwise off-limits.

Digital heritage linking generations of the diaspora

Digital restoration becomes a channel for overseas Chinese generations to reach their homeland's cultural heritage across time and space. Chinese children growing up in Korea can also 'see' the Longmen Grottoes through a screen. Huanqiu noted that technology is becoming a new medium of cultural transmission.