The Northern Wei was a dynasty founded by the Tuoba clan of the Xianbei, who ruled northern China from 386 to 534 CE, during the period of the Southern and Northern Dynasties. Described as 'part of an era of political turbulence and intense social and cultural change', the Northern Wei Dynasty is particularly noted for unifying northern China in 439.

This was also a period of introduced foreign ideas such as Buddhism, which became firmly established. Many antiques and art works, both Daoist and Buddhist, have survived from this period.