Uighur Nobles

Qocho kingdom, 10th c. AD
Cave 20, Bezeklik Grottoes, Xinjiang

High-ranking Uighur men, their faces decorated with moustaches and beards, present flower stalks that rise from their folded sleeves as they walk in procession. They wear mitred hats and rich robes. Pouches and ceremonial knives dangle from their belts.

Bezeklik was ruled from 850 by the Buddhist Uighur state of Qocho, eventually passing into the hands of Genghis Khan in 1209.