ANCIENT

CHINA

PRE-HISTORIC CHINA

Paleolithic China:Peking Man

Fossils found in 1920’s -30’s -- date to 500,000 bce

Zhoukoudian Cave -- 40 km. south of Beijing Classified as HOMO ERECTUS

Neolithic China ca. 12,000-2000 bce

Neolithic China ca. 12,000-2000 bce

Although Neolithic period began ca. 12,000 bce in China, good evidence dates back only to 4,000 bce

Largest concentration of agriculture near Yellow River: millet was main crop

Much wetter geography: most of N. China was lakes and marshes, and central China was covered with enormous lake.

Silk production in Northern China began even before the Neolithic period.

Clustered dwelling suggest importance of kinship

9000 year-old flutes

These 9,000-year-old Chinese flutes are believed to be the oldest known playable instruments.

They're made from the forelimbs of a rare crane.

Yangshao Culture5000-2500 bce

Primitive techniques of cultivation: millet main crop

Semisubterranean houses in mountains of northern and western China

Their handcrafted, Painted Pottery occasionally bears a single incised sign that may be a forerunner of Chinese writing

Domesticated the dog and the pig

Lung-shan Culture ca.2500-1000 bce

More advanced agriculture Permanent settlements in the eastern

plains, and expansion into Manchuria, and Central and South China.

Black Pottery Practiced ancestor worship Domesticated pig, dog, sheep and ox

Jade Early Chinese describe

jade as embodying five virtues: Benevolence is typified

by its luster that is bright and warm

Integrity by its translucency

Wisdom by its sonorous ring when struck

Courage by its hardness

Steadfastness by its durability Ornament in shape of pig-dragon (zhulong)

Neolithic, Hongshan culture ca. 3600-2000 bce

Neolithic Jade

Modern jade includes nephrite and jadeite: only nephrite used in Neolithic times

Ranges widely in color, from pale to dark green, from white to yellow, from brown to black.

Extremely hard, so inordinately difficult to work. It cannot be carved, but must be ground by a material harder than itself

The Neolithic tools of choice were probably a gut saw and bamboo drill together with an abrasive in the form of river sand or sludge.

Earliest pieces date ca. 7000 bce

Hongshan Jade

Far to the northeast, in the Manchurian hills, archaeologists have uncovered traces of a ceremonial center at Niuheliang associated with the Hongshan culture (4700-2920 B.C.).

Jade objects found in tombs

Liangzhu Jade Congs

Found almost exclusively in burial contexts, indicating ritual and religious significance

Unique form of a circle within a square suggests some cosmological significance.

Perhaps the circle symbolizes heaven, and the square symbolizes earth

Xia Dynasty 21st-16th c. bce

Xia Dynasty 21st-16th c. bce

First prehistoric dynasty: descendants of Lung-Shan culture

Early bronze age sites in Henan first discovered in 1928

Urban sites, bronze implements, and tombs that point to the existence of Xia civilization in the same locations cited in ancient Chinese texts

Evolutionary stage between the late neolithic cultures and the urban civilization of the Shang dynasty.

HISTORIC DYNASTIES

Shang Dynasty16th-11th c. bce

Shang Dynasty

Central Yellow River Valley Oldest examples of Chinese

writing Hunters and farmers Brilliant bronze culture Cities

Cheng Chow (16th c. bc) Anyang (C. 1384-1111 bc) Ornament of the late Shang,

7 cm The figurine shows the costume and headdress

usually worn by people in the Shang Dynasty

Shang Social Organization

City-states under the nominal rule of a high king

Proto-feudalism. The area under the jurisdiction

of the king quite probably was small, perhaps not more than 100-200 miles in any direction from Anyang.

Traces of a family ruling system and of ancestor-worship are discernible.

Rigidly patriarchal society. Shang Tang - the first ruling king of the Shang dynasty

Writing

Oracle bones used for divination.

A question was written on the bone, which was then fired and a T shaped crack was produced to be interpreted; the interpretation was then written on the bone.

After the predicted event occurred, the date of the occurrence was also written on the bone.

Astronomy and Calendar

Oracle bone with record of solar eclipse

Ox bone inscribed with a table of the Heavenly Stems and

Earthly Branches

ZhongqiShang Bronzes

Ritual bronze vessels Range from the very small and light to

very large Bronze vessels are called "zhongqi" or

heavy vessels in Chinese.

4 Elements of Zhongqi

Sophisticated bronze technology Li-qi: ritual art -- used for worship, not

utilitarian Restricted decoration and shape Shang bronze types were copied and

reused later in Chinese history, even into the nineteenth century

Taotie

Taotie

This pattern appears on nearly all Shang bronzes,

and has been interpreted as a

vague suggestion of an animal's

head. The animal is unclear, as are

many of the elements of the

decoration, so it is called zoomorphic:

shaped like an animal.

Shang Religion

The Shang worshipped the "Shang Ti," a supreme god over lesser gods, the sun, the moon, the wind, the rain, and other natural forces and places.

Highly ritualized, ancestor worship Sacrifice to the gods and the ancestors When a king died, hundreds of slaves and

prisoners were often sacrificed and buried with him.

Woman Warrior: Fu Hao13th c. bce

The tomb of Fu Hao is the only royal Shang tomb to have been found unlooted.  

The floor level housed the royal corpse and most of the utensils and implements buried with her. 

Below the corpse was a small pit holding the remains of 6 dogs, and the skeletons of 16 humans. 

Fu Hao was mentioned in oracle bone inscriptions as the consort of King Wu Ding and a general who participated in several campaigns. 

ZHOU DYNASTY 1027 bc-221 bc

Periods of Zhou Dynasty

771 bce -- Zhou invaded by barbarians allied with rebel lords; king killed. Capital moved eastward to Luoyang in Henan Province

Western Zhou: 1027-771 bce Eastern Zhou 770-221 bce

770-476 bce: Spring and Autumn Period 475-221 bce: Warring States Period

Zhou Dynasty

Introduced organized agriculture Feudal society

Land grants in return for support in war and loyalty

Ruler: Tian or “Son of Heaven Principal of societal relationships illustrated in

the Book of Odes and the Book of Rituals Confucianism and Taoism introduced

Zhou Jade: Ritual

Changes in ritual and funeral custom manifested themselves in the appearance of jade-piece masks and, much later, jade burial suits.

Belief that jade could protect the corpse from decay, thereby providing the spirit with a "living" home.

The pieces of this jade mask were sewn on a silk veil to define the facial features of the deceased.

Musical Instruments

Bian zhong was the main ritual instrument played at sacrificial

activities or feasts of

aristocrats in the Western Zhou

Dynasty. Percussion instrument of

Western Zhou, height 38.5-48 cm

Qin (Chin) Dynasty 221 bce -206 bce

First unified the country by subjugating the Warring States

Established central bureaucracy

Legalism supplanted Confucianism: scholars persecuted and books burned

Standardized writing, currency, weights and measures

Qin Shihuangdi

Qin Building Projects

– Used forced labor of convicts and peasants

– Roads and canals– Palaces– Connected

fortification walls to build 5000 kilometer Great Wall

Mausoleum of Qin Emperor ShiHuangdi (First Emperor)

Qin ShiHuangdi’s Mausoleum was discovered in 1974 by farmers digging a well.

The 13 year-old emperor had ordered 800,000 workers to build his tomb.

Terra Cotta Army Rebellions broke out after

Emperor’s death in 210 bce: dynasty overthrown after only 15 years of rule

ConfuciusK’ung fu-tzu or Kongfuzi

551-479 bc Son of aristocrat, raised in poverty Itinerant teacher Sayings collected in The Analects Possibly edited The Book of Songs

Confucianism Importance of traditional values: self-

control, filial piety, propriety, ritual Individual virtue leads to societal virtue Contextual morality -- guided by

circumstances of a particular problem Obedience contingent upon

benevolence

Confucian Values Li: propriety, ceremony, civility. 4 basic rules of human

conduct: courtesy, politeness, good manners, respect (reverence for age)

Jen (Ren): respect for self and others:”Do not do to others what you do not want done to you.” Charity and courtesy

Te: virtue, the power of moral example as in a strong leader who guides by example or in the forces of nature

Wen: the arts of peace: music, poetry, art -- conducive to harmony and order and a model of excellence. Traditional Chinese art always strives for beauty.

The Six Relationships

Obedience in The Six Relationships is contingent upon the superior members observing their duty

to be benevolent and caring.

Ruler Teacher

Older Friend

Subject Student YoungerFriend

The Mandate of Heaven

The moral order of the Universe: right and wrong

Fate: Life and death are beyond our control.

The right to rule: knowing and observing the moral order of the Universe

The judgement of history: losing the Mandate of Heaven results in loss of power.

Lao Tzu or Lao Zi“Old Sage” or “Old Master”

Born c. 604 bc Author of Tao te Ching or

Taodejing: The Way and Its Power Legendary life

TAOISM Tao: the ultimate reality behind

existence, a transcendant essence. Highly individualistic and mystical

character Existential skepticism Wu-wei: spontaneity -- to discern and

follow the natural forces -- to follow and shape the natural flow of events, not to struggle against nature

Yin and Yang

Negative and positive principles of the universe. One cannot exist without the other, and they often

represent opposites in relations to each other. As there is more and more Yang, eventually, Yin

will appear and replace this increase. Similarly in the opposite direction, Yang will appear to replace the increase in Yin

YIN YANG

Negative Female Dark Evil Earth

Positive Male Light Good Heaven

Three Jewels

Compassion - leads to courage

Moderation - leads to generosity

Humility - leads to leadership

ANCIENT

CHINA

Earliest Dynasties

Xia Dynasty 21st-16th c. bce

Shang Dynasty 16th-11th c. bce

first writing

Zhou Dynasty1027 bc-221 bc

ConfucianismTaoism

CLASSICAL

CHINA

Dynasties

Qin (Chin) Dynasty

221 bc-206 bc

origin of name of China

The Han Empire206 bce-220 ce