The Dunhuang Academy, which promotes and protects the complex of 492 cave temples, is planning to permanently install digital reconstructions of a number of the caves.

BBC: Digital Chinese caves preserve history

One display shows a video reconstruction of the sculptures in their original cave settings, which, like the digital Dunhuang cave, gives visitors the illusion of being inside the environment.

BBC: Digital Chinese caves preserve history

"Recreating a virtual Dunhuang cave to give scholars worldwide free access to this geographically scattered material from their laptops has always been the aim of the project, " said Dr Whitfield.

BBC: Silk Road treasures united on the web

Their pilgrimage took them to the cultural treasures at Luoyang and Xian, both sites of ancient capitals, the old trading post of Dunhuang and, of course, Beijing and the Great Wall.

CNN: WOMAN WARRIOR

Yet while the question of returning the Dunhuang treasures has arisen several times - the Chinese Worker's Daily carried a campaign for their return several years ago - Chinese authorities have never formally brought up the issue of the Dunhuang treasures.

BBC: NEWS | UK | Magazine | The original Chinese takeaway