Luoyang is 25 kilometers to the south of the Yellow River, and is well known in China as "The Capital of Nine Dynasties", having been capital on and off from the Eastern Zhou (770 BC) to the later Tang Dynasty (923-936 AD).

The reason for Luoyang's popularity in ancient times is mostly linked to the geographical and climatic factors of Henan. Many times the imperial entourage had to move from the chosen favourite, Xi'an, due to the frequent droughts that plagued this part of China.


The strong collection of Buddhist grottoes situated just outside Luoyang are testament to the importance that Buddhism once held in Chinese history. The Longmen Grotto boasts 1352 caves, more than 100000 statues, 40 pagodas and 3600 tablets with Buddhist inscriptions.

Carving began here in the 5th century when the Wei dynasty moved its capital from Datong (where they created the famous Yungang Groto, see the photos in the Datong Gallery) to Luoyang. At this time, Chinese Buddhism was reaching its first peak, and the emperor himself was a pious believer. Carving continued after the Wei dynasty ended and the Tang Dynasty witnessed the second peak of Buddhist belief. Construction of more than half of the works seen today in the grotto date back to this period.