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China project thingy

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David Mergle

on 13 June 2013

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Transcript of China project thingy


Info/Pictures from:
Outlooks 7: Ancient Worlds - Arnold Toutant/Susan Doyle
The Great Wall - Luo Zewen, Dick Wilson, J.P. Drege, H. Delahaye
China: Old Ways Meet New - Deborah Kent
China - Hyman Kublin
Daily Life
Despite being isolated from the rest of the ancient world, surprisingly life ancient China was very similar to life in other ancient civilizations. Like other civilizations Ancient China was a layered society, this social structure was like a ladder with each group of society belonging on one rung. At the top of this ladder was the Emperor who ruled with complete authority, their wealth came from taxes and from holding farmland. Then came the civil servants, the people who could read and write tended to become civil servants and worked for the emperor. They collected taxes, judged court cases, organized workers for building projects and enforced laws. Peasants tended to be poor, nevertheless they were still respected for providing food for others. Merchants were "less worthy than peasants" because they made money from other people's products and the lowest position on the ladder was reserved for soldiers and servants.
There were many innovations and inventions in ancient China, some examples of these innovations are: the bell, the crossbow, fireworks, forks, noodles, toilet paper, etc. Most of these inventions are still being used today and many of these we use on a daily basis. The Ancient Chinese Invented four of some of the most important inventions in human history: Paper, Printing, Gunpowder and the Compass, these innovations are known as the Four Great Inventions.
There were 7 main dynasties in Ancient China, Qin, Han, Tang, Song, Yuan, Ming and Qing. The Qin dynasty lasted for fourteen years, Han lasted for 426 years, Tang for 290 years, Song for 319 years, Yuan for 89 years, Ming for 276 and Qing for 267 years. Within these dynasties rulers were known as emperors. Emperors lived in the upper class of Ancient China, they wore the finest clothes, they were extremely rich and they had a lot of power. Some of these rulers abused their powers but others used their powers to increase trade and as a result Ancient China thrived.
There were three major religions in ancient China: Taoisim, Confucianism and Buddahsim. Taoisim is the oldest religion out of the three forming sometime around 600 B.C., a "mythical figure" known as Lao Tzu created Taoisim. The Ancient Chinese believed in the concept of Tao: the forces of nature, they believed that there were two forces in nature that were in contrast to each other: Yin and Yang. Confucianism was formed around 551 B.C. and isn't technically a "real" religion. Confucius (the creator of Confucianism) was a philosopher and a politician who believed in honor and morality, his philosophy re-established said values and urged his members to do the same. Buddahisim was introduced about 2,000 years ago and is the most popular religion in China today.
Economy and Trade
The Great Wall Of China
Inventions and Innovations,
Trade was a huge part of Ancient China, especially during the Tang and Song dynasties. Unexplored sea routes linked China to other countries such as Korea, Southwest Asia, India, and Japan. China mostly exported salt, iron, cattle, fish and silk; they imported plants, glass, wool and precious metals such as silver and gold. All this trading established a strong economy in Ancient China. China's initial form of currency was coins known as Cowrie shells but when China's wealth started to rapidly increased currency changed from shells to paper money.
The Great wall of China is possibly the greatest man-made structure ever made (it's supposedly visible from space). Construction on the wall began in 1368 during the Ming dynasty, invasions from the north prompted the emperors to build the great wall. The wall was completed in 1620 and was made up of bricks and stone. The Great Wall is approximately 8,851.8 and consisted of 25 000 watchtowers. While some portions of the wall have been preserved and repaired most of the wall is in disrepair, prone to graffiti and vandalism. The Wall is considered to be one of the wonders of the world and is listed as a world heritage site.
Ancient China is located on the continent of Asia and consists of mountains, hills, forests and deserts. The climate in China is very similar to North America and the Ancient Chinese fished, farmed and irrigated the land. There were many bodies of water surrounding Ancient China (ex: Yellow River, East China Sea, etc.).
For centuries China has been one of the world's greatest producers of food due to the fact that they had to supply food for millions of people the Ancient Chinese raised many crops, some of these crops were: Rice, wheat, barley, millet and sorghum. There wasn't very much protein in the typical Chinese diet, that protein came from fish, pork and chicken. Regardless of your class every Chinese meal had fan (cooked grain) and cai (vegetables). The Ancient Chinese tended drink tea and warm rice beer.
Ancient Chinese fashion mostly consisted of robes, wealthy people wore robes made out of silk, common people wore robes made out of cotton and peasants wore robes made out of hemp. The three main types of traditional clothing in Ancient China are the pien-fu, the ch'ang-p'ao, and the shen-i. The pien-fu was a 2 piece ceremonial costume consisting of a tunic top and a skirt or trousers. The ch'ang-p'ao is a one piece tunic dress. The shen-i is a combination of the first two, its a 2 piece outfit that have been sewn together to make a one piece outfit.
There were two main ways of transportation in Ancient China were: boats and chariots. There was no form of wheeled vehicle in Ancient China prior to the chariot (invented in 1200 B.C.) and after the chariot there wasn't much more development in transportation. Boats were a major source of transportation due to the fact that Ancient China was surrounded by many bodies of water. Boats were used for many things in Ancient China such as: business, traveling, political motives, etc, etc.
Song: Give Life Back To Music- By Daft Punk
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