Since Buddhism spread to China from India during the Han dynasty (1st century), Chinese Buddhist art had evolved through adaptation and innovation. During the 4th to 6th century, the Northern Dynasties (386-581) was ruled by the nomadic Xianbei, Buddhism was revered by emperors and commoners alike, and Daoist and Buddhist teachings mutually influenced each other. Against this social backdrop, Chinese Buddhist sculptures blossomed into a rich variety of styles.

In the early period of the Northern Dynasties, when the capital of Northern Wei (386-534) was in ancient Pingcheng (present day Datong, Shanxi), the style was unembellished and robust with the blending of the nomadic-Hu and Han characteristics. By the mid-late period (after the capital was moved to Luoyang, Henan in 494), the idealized image of the lean and elegant Chinese literati became popular. In the later period of Eastern Wei to Northern Zhou (534-581), classical Indian and innovative Chinese characteristics combined to create an elegant and handsome style.

These different buddha images, smiling upon us compassionately, tell the story of the Buddha’s myriad expedients to lead sentient beings to enlightenment.