Northern Wei


The Northern Wei Dynasty (北魏, pinyin: běi wèi, 386-534), also known as the Tuoba Wei (拓拔魏) or Yuan Wei (元魏), is most noted for the unification of northern China in 439, it was also heavily involved in funding the arts and many antiques and art works from this period have survived. In 494 AD the dynasty moved its capital from Datong to Luoyang and started the construction of the artificial Longmen Caves. More than 30,000 Buddhist images from the time of this dynasty have been found in the caves. It is thought the dynasty originated from the Tuoba clan of the non-Han Xianbei tribe. The Tuobas renamed themselves the Yuans as a part of systematic Sinicization. Towards the end of the dynasty there was significant internal dissidence resulting in a split into Eastern Wei Dynasty and Western Wei Dynasty.