4 early River Valley Civilizations Sumerian Civilization - Tigris & Euphrates Rivers (Mesopotamia) Egyptian Civilization - Nile River Harappan Civilization - Indus River Ancient China - Huang He River

ENTER “The Four Early River Valley Civilizations” Mesopotamia [Sumer] (Tigris & Euphrates Rivers) Egypt (Nile River) Indus Valley (Indus River) Ancient China (Huang He River) ENTER A Chinese junk on the Huang He today. An artist visualizes what the ancient Chinese village of Banpo on the Huang He may have looked like over 4,000 years ago.

Geography Challenges? Isolation Barriers – Mountains and Deserts Gobi Desert Taklimakan Desert Himalaya Mts. Pacific Ocean Geography Challenges? Isolation Barriers – Mountains and Deserts 10% arable land LOVE 3

II. Organized Government A. Dynastic Cycle – established an order to the rule over China i. Mandate of Heaven B. Shang: Complex bureaucracy C. Zhou: Feudalism = little centralized authority D. Qin: Autocratic; emperor E. Han: Civil Service Exam; bureaucracy under emperor The dynastic cycle a. Founding the dynasty b. Internal peace, expansion and great power c. Period of regression and decline d. Chaos and rebellion e. Founding of new dynasty 2. Cultural evolution shown through patterns of change in the family, in the farm and in the village. Shang Dynasty (1750 – 1122 BCE) 1. The Shang conquered the Huang He River Valley, where the Xia people were already established but lacked government to help with irrigation 2. Government during the Shang period a. Complex bureaucracy b. Used military force to control people, expand territory and to spread their ideas 4

III. Cities Cities were within territories that were governed by aristocrats (provinces) Cities (States) worked together to construct walls to keep out invaders – Qin Left: The Ruins of a Shang Dynasty City in Zhengzhou

The Great Wall of China 30 Feet High 40 Foot Towers 1,500 miles long Built in 7 Years 500,000 workers died while making the Great Wall

法家 IV. Organized Religion Life after death and human rituals Shang: animism combined with ancestor worship Zhou  Han: 3 philosophies on the nature of man and the universe developed that influenced Chinese society Confucianism (preferred by the Han) Daoism Legalism (preferred by the Qin) . Religion in the Shang dynasty combined animism with ancestor worship a. All powerful and kindly dragon became the symbol for rulers b. Gods of nature (wind, Sun, moon) c. Shang Ti was the principal god responsible for destiny and controlled the forces of nature d. Depended on ancestors to bring good favor from Shang Ti (precursor to the Zhou idea of Mandate of Heaven) 法家

V. Class Structure/Social Stratification Class system based on occupation Kings and royals at the top Aristocracy – includes civil servants (landowners) Peasants – farmers Merchants & artisans Slaves – used for building projects Culture during the Shang dynasty a. Economy based on agriculture mainly i. Grew millet, barley and rice ii. Domesticated chicken, pigs, and horses iii. Discovered silkworms  silk cloth b. Merchants and artisans made and traded jewelry, ceramic art, pottery, etc.

VI. Writing Simple script (Shang)  complex written language Pictographic & ideographic Only language that did not change its written roots entirely Chinese developed a unique language that consisted of many dialects; common written language was established i. Thousands of characters ii. Signifier = meaning & Phonetic = sound

VII. Art/Architecture (Technological Advancements, too!) Bronze work (Shang)  Iron work (Han) Trade networks & advancements Fore-and-aft rigging; rudder Confucian Literature Great Wall & Emperor Shi Huangdi’s mausoleum Iron work = steel

Silk Routes, over-land and over-sea Dynastic China and the Making of the Modern World THE SILK ROAD Silk Routes, over-land and over-sea Prepared by Sir Martin Perez, for SS2 SY 2006/07 13

THE SILK ROAD China silk, clothing, lacquer ware, spices Indo-China Dynastic China and the Making of the Modern World THE SILK ROAD China silk, clothing, lacquer ware, spices Indo-China spices, ivory, timber, pearls North India precious stones, ivory, tortoise shell, incense, spices, cloth, timber South India ivory, tortoiseshell, spices, precious stones, cloth, timber Arabia spices, slaves, precious stones East Africa gold, ivory, exotic animals, slaves, incense Trans-Sahara ivory, gold, slaves North Africa grain South Europe olive oil, wine, glassware, coinage West Europe silver, tin North Europe slaves, amber Asia Minor silver, precious stones, timber, wine Prepared by Sir Martin Perez, for SS2 SY 2006/07 14

If you were to bury items in a large pit that would help archeologists in 2000 years identify who you were and what you were about, what would you bury?

Pits of rare birds and animals Stable pits Tombs of Emperor Qin’s children Mass graves of laborers Pit of two sets of Bronze Chariots and Horses Pit of Stone Armor and Helmets Pit of Terra-Cotta Acrobats and a Bronze Tripod Pit of Civil Officials Pit of Terra-Cotta Army

Knowing what was included in Shi Huangdi’s mausoleum, what can we assume to be true about the first emperor of the Qin dynasty? What kind of ruler/man was he?