Painted sculptures of Dunhuang Mogao Grottoes are important constituents of Dunhuang’s cultural art.To study the safety of painted sculptures under rare earthquakes

the finite element models were built according to internal structure of painted sculptures

which are made of wooden frame

reed-padded layer

coarse clay layer and fine clay layer from internal to external.By comparing sweep frequency experiment results with modal analysis results

it is proved that the finite element models can reflect the dynamic performance of painted sculptures.On the basis of this

the response of painted sculptures under rare earthquakes was calculated

the results of model’s stress

displacement and acceleration were analyzed

and the earthquake-resistant performance of painted sculptures was evaluated.The results show under rare earthquakes the standing posture model’s maximum stress is within permitted range

but it is close to failure value.The positions in which standing posture model appear damage are below model’s leg region

around neck and joint of arm and upper half body;the maximum stress appears in the joint of sitting posture model’s back and base.The value exceeds tensile strength

tensile failure occurs.The maximum response spots are tops of models.The response of sitting posture is less than standing posture.It is considered that there is a risk of damage to painted sculptures under rare earthquake.