During the period of the Sui, Tang, and Five Dynasties, China again became a unified great empire. Although the Five Dynasties did not unify the world, each dynasty was short-lived and the momentum of the great empire could still be maintained, thus the Five Dynasties are regarded as the end of the imperial culture. Overall, the era characteristics of the tomb murals in the Sui, Tang, and Five Dynasties derive from the powerful central government.