Wutai, in Shanxi province, is a Buddhist complex dating back to the Southern and Northern Dynasties (420 - 581) when Buddhism was introduced to the area and it reflects different types of productivity, living habits, and aesthetic views, with the temples and other structures retaining their own unique features and styles. The administrators of the scenic area describe it as museum of Chinese Buddhist architecture.

The oldest structures, going back to the Tang Dynasty (618 – 907), are the Nanchan Temple and the eastern hall of the Foguang Temple. There were two large attempts to suppress Buddhism under the Zhouwu emperor (543 - 578) of the Northern Zhou Dynasty (557 - 581) and the Tangwu emperor (814 - 846) of the Tang, when almost all of the Buddhist buildings of Wutai were burned down. Nonetheless, there is still a great deal of heritage in Wutai to give a picture of Chinese Buddhist architecture, with each of the dynasties after the Tang showing its typical forms that are quite distinct from the others.