1. Ancient China

2. Introduction
Ancient China was a fascinating mix of extreme extravagance and extreme poverty. The
ancient Chinese invented paper, gunpowder, matches, umbrellas, and the compass. They created incredible art, wrote marvelous literature, and held splendid festivals.

3. Natural Barriers
For thousands of years, the ancient Chinese thought they were pretty much alone on the planet, except for the barbarians to the north, the Mongols.
China’s natural barriers to the west, south, and east helped protect these early people from invasion.
Teacher’s notes: In geography, as you know, a natural barrier is any landform or body of water that barricades or blocks easy access to an area. You will probably need to check to make sure your students understand the definition of a natural barrier. If they cannot define it, have someone look it up in a dictionary or your textbook and read the definition to the class.

4. Deserts China’s natural barriers include deserts.
The Gobi is one of the driest deserts in the world. In the Gobi, there is at least the hope of water, although an oasis is rare.
The Taklamakan is called the “Sea of Death.” It is the second-largest desert in the world. It offers poisonous snakes, sandstorms, boiling days, freezing nights, and intense water shortages.

5. Mountains
China’s natural barriers include huge mountains. The Himalayas are very rugged, with ten of the tallest peaks in the world. Mount Everest is the highest mountain in the world.

6. Seas
China’s natural barriers include three vast seas: the China Sea, the Yellow Sea, and the Pacific Ocean.

7. Rivers
Not all of China’s geography acted as barriers. Some of its geographic features provided fertile soil and safe drinking water.
China has two major river systems: the Yellow River (Huang He) and the Yangtze River.

8. Rivers
The Yangtze (Long River) is the fourth-longest river in the world. It’s nearly 4000 miles long. It has high banks.
The Huang He (Yellow River) is about 3000 miles long. It has low banks.
Teacher’s notes: The Yellow River is about 500 miles longer than the distance from New York to Los Angeles.

9. Rivers
The ancient Chinese called all rivers in China “The Great Sorrow” because each year during the annual flood season, the towns along the rivers were destroyed. Each year, they were rebuilt.
Over time, people learned the techniques of flood control. Some built their homes high above the river to avoid flooding.

10. Early People
Civilization in ancient China began along the Yellow River about 5000 years ago. These early people harvested silk and used it to weave fine fabrics. They used a potter’s wheel to make
beautiful pottery. They baked strong bricks and used them to build their homes. They worked together on flood-control and irrigation projects.

11. Xia Dynasty
A dynasty is a line of rulers who belong to the same family and pass control from one generation to the next.
Legend says that the “Great Engineer” Yu founded the first dynasty, the Xia (shee-uh) Dynasty.

12. Xia Dynasty
Since there was no written language at that time, no one is sure if the great engineer Yu ever existed.
However, scientists are sure that these early clever people did exist.
Archaeologists have found ruins of their villages. 

13. Discussion Question
Why do you think these early people chose to live along the banks of a river that flooded each year and destroyed their homes?
Teacher’s notes: There are many answers to this question, including access to freshwater for drinking, bathing, and crop irrigation; fertile soil; easy access to a transportation and escape route.

14. Shang Dynasty Chou (Zhou) Dynasty 1700–c. 250 BCE
Shang/Chou Dynasties
Shang Dynasty Chou (Zhou) Dynasty 1700–c. 250 BCE
Two families ruled China for the next 1500 years: first the Shang family ruled, and then the Chou family ruled. Life continued in pretty much the same way for people during both dynasties.
Teacher’s notes: The Chou Dynasty (sometimes spelled Zhou) is pronounced “joe.” For many thousands of years, China was mostly a rural society controlled by a series of powerful warrior-kings.

15. Shang/Chou Dynasties
During the Shang and Chou dynasties, protective walls surrounded cities. Rulers, priests, and warriors lived inside the walls. Merchants and craftsmen lived outside the walls in mud houses. Farmers lived in nearby villages.

16. Shang/Chou Dynasties
Family: The family was all- important. If one member of a family did something wrong, the entire family was disgraced. The oldest male served as head of the family. The role of the woman was to be gentle and to obey her husband.

17. Shang/Chou Nobles
Shang and Chou kings and nobles wore gowns of silk. They lived in large, brick homes with tiled roofs, all beautifully decorated and furnished. The air was scented with flowers from the gardens and spices from pots of food steaming on stoves. When they died, the rich were buried in lavish tombs.
Teacher’s notes: Unlike the ancient Egyptians, the Shang and Chou were buried with living people. In their tombs, archaeologists have found entire chariots, objects of art, and the remains of guards and dogs that accompanied kings to their graves.

18. Peasant Farmers
Most people were farmers. Summer homes were made of bamboo branches. Winter homes were one-room mud houses with thatched roofs, dirt floors, and no furniture. Nobles owned the land. Peasants had to give nobles most of the crops they grew, along with presents of silk and wine. Peasants worked without pay on their landowner’s home, roads, and bridges.

19. Spring Festival
It was during the annual Spring Festival that, for once, the peasants had an advantage over the nobles. At about age 15, children from several farming villages would gather. Unlike nobles, peasant marriages were rarely arranged. At the annual Spring Festival, boys and girls first met each other and chose a wife or husband.
Teacher’s notes: The Spring Festival served many purposes. It honored ancestors. It offered an opportunity to pray for new crops and to honor the many gods and goddesses in which the ancient Chinese believed. But the annual Spring Festival was also a marriage mart. People planned for the Spring Festival all year long. Each year, a different village would host the festival. It was an enormous honor and expense to be the host village. The Spring Festival was a really big deal for the farmers and their children. Many ideas were exchanged. Many new friends were made, friends that could be very useful in times of trouble.

20. Merchants
Since merchants and craftsmen did not produce food and were not nobility, they received little respect.
When a city was attacked in times of war, they were not taken inside the protective walls, but were left to fend for themselves as best they could.

21. Warriors
During the Shang and Chou periods, there were many wars. Clan leaders were always fighting.
Bronze was used as early as the Shang Dynasty to make helmets, daggers, spears, and axes.
Teacher’s notes: Clans in ancient China were composed of the extended families of various nobles. The leader of each clan, the warlords, were always fighting.

22. Warriors
War was waged with horse-drawn chariots. Each chariot held a driver, a spearman, and an archer.
Behind them came the peasants. The peasants were foot soldiers, dressed in tunics and trousers. They wore no protective gear.

23. Shang Achievements
The Shang made many important contributions to ancient Chinese culture.
The Shang introduced the use of bronze. It was during the Shang Dynasty that chopsticks were invented.

24. Chinese Writing These early people also created a system of writing.
zero
zero (simple)
one
two
three
four
five
six

25. Chinese Writing seven eight nine ten dragon law religion rice river
silk

26. Ancestor Worship
The Shang introduced ancestor worship. The ancient Chinese believed that the ghosts of their dead ancestors had magical powers that could either punish or help them.
To keep their ancestors happy, they brought gifts of food and wine to to temples or other special places.

27. Oracle Bones
To communicate with their ancestors, Shang kings used “oracle bones.” Oracle bones were the bones of animals or turtle shells.
The king would ask, “Will it rain tomorrow?” His question was carved on an oracle bone. When pricked with a hot needle, a pattern of cracks appeared in the bone.

28. Oracle Bones
The priest (who was usually a woman) would study the cracks to find the answer to the question.
Archaeologists have found over 100,000 oracle bones. The questions they ask tell scientists a great deal about ancient Chinese daily life.
Teacher’s notes: The ancient Chinese didn’t exactly ask, “Will it rain tomorrow?” Oracle bones say things like: “If we sacrifice ten men or five oxen, will it rain tomorrow?” The Shang kings sacrificed a great number of people in order to talk to their ancestors. Some of those sacrificed were enemies captured in war; others were slaves or people who were sick or deformed. Some were merchants, craftsmen, or farmers who had upset the nobles. Some were nobles who had upset the king.

29. Magical Beings
The ancient Chinese also believed in magical beings with magical powers, such as dragons. In ancient China, dragons did not breathe fire. They had a job to do. Their job was to guard all of China and everything in it—including the rivers, mountains, and forests.
Dragons were guardians.

30. Religion
Like most ancient civilizations, the ancient Chinese believed in many gods and goddesses.
The most powerful god in ancient China was the Jade Emperor. He had many helpers. One of his helpers was the goddess of mercy, pictured as a lady in white sitting on a lotus and holding a baby. People would visit her temple and shake rattles and set off firecrackers to get her attention and ask for her help.
Teacher’s notes: The ancient Chinese worshiped many gods. The god of war was a red-faced god dressed in green. Like the ancient Greeks, most ancient Chinese gods looked like people.

31. Religion
Another helper was the god of thunder. One of his jobs was to punish criminals whose crimes had gone undetected.
The ancient Chinese believed greatly in reward and punishment. You can see that in their gods.

32. Religion
In ancient China, you did not have to be born a god to become a god. If you had lived a life that was especially kind and had always helped others, the goddess Queen Mother Wang could reward you with a peach of everlasting life to eat.
These good people became gods with various small jobs to do.

33. Religion
Ordinary people who became gods by eating a magical peach were thought of as kindly, wise old men, whose job was to see that everything ran smoothly. Temples were built and festivals were held to honor the gods.
Teacher’s notes: The ancient Chinese believed that everyone had a job to do. It was each person’s responsibility to do their job to the very best of their ability. This was true of people, gods and goddesses, the ghosts of their ancestors, and magical beings with special powers. If you did your job well, everyone benefited; if you did it poorly, everyone suffered.
All gods were very much a part of daily life.

34. Mandate of Heaven
When the Chou overthrew the last Shang king, they had to convince the people—especially the nobles—that they had the right to rule. The Chou told people the “Mandate of Heaven” had appointed them rulers, but only as long as they were good rulers. If the Chou became selfish, heaven would appoint a new leader.
Teacher’s notes: No one knows if the nobles believed this fairy tale, but they most probably thought that the Mandate of Heaven sounded like a good idea. The nobles were tired of war between the Shang and the Chou. Most of the nobles knew they would have the same quality of life under either Shang or Chou rule. As for the peasants, it did not matter to them which family ruled.

35. Chou Achievements
Important contributions of the Chou Dynasty include the introduction of Confucianism and Taoism, which are two ancient doctrines, or ways of behaving and thinking.

36. Confucius
Confucius was born around 551 BCE. The ruling dynasty was the Chou, but the real power lay in the hands of the local warlords. Aristocrat-scholars, called shi, traveled from one feudal state to another, offering advice on everything from politics to weddings to war. The most famous shi was Confucius.

37. Confucius
Confucius stressed the need to develop good moral character through rules of conduct.
Good moral character: Respect father/ruler, study constantly, worship reverently, and be guided by the rules of conduct.
Rules of conduct: The rules actually were rules. Everything had to be done a certain way.

38. Confucius Here are a few of his sayings:
If you make a mistake and do not correct it, this is called a mistake
When people are educated, the distinction between classes disappears
When the ruler behaves himself correctly, the people will also
Teacher’s notes: For more information on Confucius, please see the PowerPoint included on this disc entitled “Confucius.”

39. Taoism
Taoism began in BCE times, around the same time as Confucianism. These two doctrines were quite different.
Confucianism was a set of rigid rules of social behavior.
Taoism was (and is) a set of guidelines to help you become happier.

40. Taoism
To be truly happy, Taoists believe it’s important to understand the way things are. This does not mean that there are not things we need to change about ourselves, but it’s important to recognize and trust our own inner nature and to discover who we are.

41. Taoism
In ancient China, both Confucianism and Taoism were important parts of daily life. People followed the teachings of both doctrines every day.
Confucianism provided the rules of honorable social behavior, and Taoism provided guidelines you could follow to find your way to personal happiness.
Teacher’s notes: For more information on Taoism, please see the PowerPoint included on this disc entitled “Taoism.”

42. Achievements Recap
Important contributions of the Shang Dynasty included the use of bronze, a system of writing, ancestor worship, oracle bones, and the invention of chopsticks.
Important contributions of the Chou Dynasty included the introductions of Confucianism and Taoism.

43. Questions What purpose was served by oracle bones?
Where did most peasants meet their future husband or wife? 
What metal was important to nobles? 
Who owned all of the land?
Teacher’s notes:
Priests used oracle bones to communicate with dead ancestors
At the Spring Festival
Bronze
Kings and nobles

44. Emperor: First Emperor Qin 221–206 BCE
Qin Dynasty
Qin (Ch’in) Dynasty
Emperor: First Emperor Qin 221–206 BCE
Although he ruled for only 15 years, First Emperor Qin accomplished great things. He ruled with absolute control and by extreme punishment.
Teacher’s notes: The Qin Dynasty is also called the Ch’in Dynasty. Both are correct. First Emperor Qin’s name is Qin Shi Huang. The Qin/Ch’in Dynasty marks the beginning of China’s Classical Age.

45. Terra Cotta Soldiers
Can you imagine digging in your backyard one day and discovering a life-size terra cotta soldier—made 2000 years ago completely out of clay? That’s what happened in China in 1974.
By the time archaeologists had finished digging, they had uncovered over 6000 life-size terra cotta soldiers.
Teacher’s notes: Some of the statues they found are kneeling with terra cotta bows, ready to shoot. Some are standing. Some have moustaches. Some have armor. They also found horses, spears, and chariots—all life-sized, all made out of clay.

46. Emperor Qin
It took 720,000 laborers about 34 years to create this incredible grouping. They finished just in time, right around 210 BCE, when First Emperor Qin died. His son, the second Qin emperor, saw to his burial.

47. Emperor Qin
Qin was the first man to control all of China. He did not want to be called a king. He called himself First Emperor Qin.
First Emperor Qin only ruled for 15 years. But, in the short time he ruled China, he accomplished an amazing amount of change.

48. Legalism
First Emperor Qin was a legalist. Legalists believe that people are basically bad. They believe in regulating people’s lives so that people develop the discipline to work hard in the fields and in battle.
Legalists believe in strict laws
Legalists believe in harsh punishment
Legalists believe in firm management
Teacher’s notes: The doctrine of legalism has no recognized founder. For more information on legalism, please see the PowerPoint included on this disc entitled “Legalism.”
The definition of legalism (as the ancient Chinese practiced it) is method of running a state whereby the interest of the ruling class is much more important than the interest of the common people. Legalists strive for a strong central government that holds absolute power and control over the people by the threat of extreme and harsh punishment. In history, many people have been labeled legalists.
The justification of legalists is that legalists believe that man will always look out for himself first, and thus, man is evil by nature. Legalists believe the only way to control an evil man is with the threat of violence and punishment.
To convert legalistic beliefs into action might read something like this:
You can obtain obedience by using government institutions to control.
You can control people’s actions with laws and harsh punishments.
You can gain obedience to these laws by encouraging people to spy on each other, and to report any wrong doing they see to someone in authority. That authority then is to reward the informer and to punish the wrong doer severely.
Advisers who believed in legalism would recommend regulating every aspect of people’s lives so that they would have the discipline to work hard in the fields and hard on the battlefield.

49. Qin Dynasty
First Emperor Qin was a legalist who ran his dynasty with absolute control and harsh punishment. It was illegal to complain about Qin’s government. If you simply said that things could improve, you could be put to death. First Emperor Qin set about organizing the lives of his people.
Teachers Notes: Qin is also spelled Ch’in.

50. Bureaucracy
Management: First Emperor Qin divided the empire into 36 provinces. He divided each of the provinces into districts. He put two officials in charge of each of the 36 provinces: a governor and a defender. Part of their job was to put strong people in charge in each district.

51. Bureaucracy
Bureaucracy: Workers were trained and paid and reported to supervisors. People at each level supervised those below them.
Protection: Qin set up a system of spies. He urged people to spy on each other at work and at home in their village or neighborhood. If people turned in lawbreakers, they were rewarded; if they did not, they were executed. It was a simple system, and it worked very well.

52. Bureaucracy
This organizational system gave him great power. That power allowed him to make great changes. Qin knew that to unify China there had to be big changes. Most of his laws had something to do with protection.  

53. The Great Wall
The Chou (Zhou) built pieces of a wall here and there to protect parts of their dynasty. Qin wanted a much better wall to protect his people. He used peasants, captured enemies, criminals, scholars, and anyone else who irritated him, and put them all to work building the Great Wall. Laborers were not paid for their work—it was slave labor.

54. The Great Wall
The Great Wall is truly big. Different parts of the wall are from 15 to 50 feet high. The base has a width of between 15 and 30 feet.

55. The Great Wall
The wall has guard towers spread along its entire length. It is made of granite, other rock, and earth. Its purpose was to
keep out the Mongol invaders from the north.

56. The Great Wall About 300,000 people worked on the
wall during the Qin Dynasty. Rocks fell on people. Walls caved in. People died of exhaustion and disease. Laborers were fed just
enough food to keep them alive. A Chinese saying goes, “Each stone in the wall represents a life lost in the wall’s construction.”
Teacher’s notes: This project continued long after First Emperor Qin’s death. Building the wall was a project that continued, emperor after emperor, until the wall was over 3700 miles long. Most emperors used the same system that Qin used to build the wall—forced labor. The Chinese worked on the Great Wall for over 1700 years.

57. Qin’s Changes
Land ownership: First Emperor Qin took land away from thousands of nobles. He did not want noble families rising up
against him. During the Qin dynasty, anyone could own land, as long as they paid the land tax.
Anyone who argued with Qin was either buried alive or put to work building the Great Wall.

58. Qin’s Changes
Standardization: He introduced one system of weights and measures, money, written language, and laws. Nobody argued with him.
Law enforcement: Qin announced a new law code that applied to everyone and introduced a system for enforcing the laws.

59. Qin’s Changes
Peasants: The peasants were given two jobs: farming and weaving (making silk). Those who tried to make money from other crafts or trade would be arrested, forced into slavery, and sent to work on the wall. If people were lazy, they were made into slaves or sent to work on the wall. In Qin’s dynasty, you did your assigned job and did it well, or you would be put to work doing something unpleasant, like being a slave or working on the wall.

60. Qin’s Changes
Education and book burning: Censorship is control of what people read, write, hear, and see. Qin practiced total censorship. He persecuted scholars and destroyed “useless” books. Qin defined as useless any book not about medicine, agriculture, or prophecy. Useless books were burned. Over 400 scholars who refused to turn in their books were buried alive or sent to work on the wall.
Teacher’s notes: Qin did not believe in any education for the common man. According to Qin, the more time people spent studying, the less time they had to grow food. He especially disliked the teachings of Confucius. He had all of Confucius’s books burned.

61. Qin’s Changes
Qin did not think his rule was cruel. He said, “A thousand may die so that a million may live.” He built roads, canals, and bridges. His public-works projects probably saved millions of lives that would have been lost to floods and famine. Although many people died building the Great Wall, it did provide an advantage in war.
Teacher’s notes: Qin was a legalist. Qin’s goal, which was to control people’s lives, reflected this. No rebellions occurred during his rule. After he died in 210 BCE, his son took over but did not rule for long. People all over the countryside revolted against the Qin government. The peasant who led that revolt became the first emperor of the next dynasty—the Han Dynasty. Life vastly improved during the Han Dynasty.

62. Qin Questions 1. What is censorship? What is standardization?
What is bureaucracy?
4. How did Qin’s actions show that he was a legalist?
Teacher’s notes: If you are working online, we suggest you have your students look up definitions at this website:
Here are suggested answers for the questions above:
Censorship is the control of what people read, write, hear and see.
Standardization is a uniform system of measurement or to bring into conformity with a standard.
A bureaucracy is a body of unelected government officials. It also refers to a government characterized by specialization of functions, adherence to fixed rule, and a hierarchy of authority. It can also mean a system of administration marked by officialism, red tape, and proliferation.
He set up a code of law and a network to enforce it. (spies)

63. Daily Life in Han Times: The Classical Age About 200 BCE to 200 CE
Han Dynasty
Daily Life in Han Times: The Classical Age About 200 BCE to 200 CE
Life was good for many of the people because of the demand for Chinese silk and the creation of the the Silk Road, a major system of trade routes.
Teacher’s notes: The Han Dynasty is also referred to as “Han times.” Both are correct.

64. The Silk Road
The Silk Road was not a paved road. It was not a single route. The Silk Road was a name given to any route that led across China to Rome. It was a 4000-mile trip from China to Rome. Each had something the other wanted: Rome had gold, silver, and precious gems. China had silk, spices, and ivory.
Teacher’s notes: There were three main routes from China.
Northern Route: westward to the Black Sea
Central Route: westward to Persia, the Mediterranean Sea, and Rome
Southern Route: westward to Iran and India

65. The Silk Road
It was incredibly dangerous to travel along the Silk Road. The environment was perilous. Travelers faced desolate deserts, forbidding mountains, brutal winds, and poisonous snakes. Besides those, there were bandits and pirates. There was one nice section, the Gansu Corridor, a fertile strip. To reach it, you had to cross either the desert or the mountains.

66. The Silk Road
Few traders made the whole trip. They worked in relays. Each trader would go a certain distance, exchange their goods for other goods, and hope to return. Over the centuries, the Silk Road developed a culture of its own. The routes became lined with huge temples and booming cities. Even then, it was never easy to travel.

67. The Silk Road
Traders along the Silk Road traveled to every corner of the Han empire. People bonded together into one civilization. They had a common culture. Even in remote sections, district officials copied the ways of the imperial court. Peasants built homes and plowed their fields in the same way all over China.

68. Buddhism
More than goods were transported along these international trade routes. Ideas also traveled along the Silk Road, ideas that affected everyone. One of those ideas was a new religion called Buddhism. Buddhism spread into China as ideas and stories told by travelers along the Silk Road.

69. Goal of Buddhism
The goal of Buddhism is to achieve “enlightenment,” or a state of full consciousness. Buddhism teaches that you can attain it by following a way of life called the Eightfold Path.
Teacher’s notes: For more information on Buddhism, please see the PowerPoint included on this disc entitled “Buddhism.”

70. Han Tombs
The writings of the time tell us very little about Han daily life. Their tombs, however, tell us quite a lot. The Han buried clay models of their homes and belongings in their tombs. Models included details like little clay furniture and miniature bronze oil lamps.

71. Arts & Sciences
Craftsmen made jade jewelry and carvings, gold ornaments and belt hooks, and delicate paintings with wire-thin brush strokes. Iron was used for making plows. Glazed pottery was brightly painted with lively hunting scenes, mountains, trees, clouds, dragons, tigers, and bears.
Medicine was advanced. Paper was invented. Scroll painting began.
Teacher’s notes: So much was lost during the book burnings of the Qin Dynasty. The Han people tried very hard to replace the literature that was lost during Qin times, especially the works of Confucius. They created new works of literature and music. They painted beautiful murals on the walls of palaces. Many things were invented during this time period, including a new instrument that told them when an earthquake was happening somewhere in the empire, so the government could send troops and food to help. For more ancient Chinese inventions, see the slide labeled “Inventions.”

72. Public School
One of the Han emperors (Emperor Wudi) agreed with Confucius that education was the key to good government. He started a system of public schools for boys only, taught by Confucian teachers. He set up schools in each province. Enrollment at the Grand School in the capital was over 30,000 students. Students learned many things, including the teachings of Confucius.
Teacher’s notes: Emperor Wudi started his public school system around 100 CE. Children of the rich did not attend the public schools; they had tutors. The public schools were for the children of farmers, merchants, warriors, and others. Educated people could get jobs with salaries, so the competition to enter public school was brisk.

73. Life in the Cities
Cities were laid out with main streets and alleyways. A strong wall made of earth and stone surrounded each city. Han cities were centers of government, education, and trade. Most marketplaces had free entertainment. Musicians played bells, drums, and string instruments, and jugglers and acrobats performed.
Teacher Note: About 10% of the poupulation lived in the cities.

74. Cities: The Poor
The poor lived in houses packed together. They had very little food, and little to no sanitation.
Teens sometimes joined street gangs. Members wore distinctive clothes and armor that identified their gang. Teen gangs roamed the cities terrorizing people.

75. Cities: The Rich
The rich imitated the style of the imperial palace. They built big houses furnished with draperies, carved furniture, and cashmere carpets. They wore belted robes with long silk-lined sleeves and warm fur coats in the winter. Children of the nobles had tutors. They studied science, math, literature, art, religion, and music.
Teacher’s notes:
Merchants and craftsmen: Once canals were built, some merchants and craftsmen became rich. A really successful merchant might ride in a cart with a coachman, buy a title from an emperor, and build a mansion surrounded by pools and gardens. This absolutely infuriated both officials and peasants. The merchants didn’t till the soil; they weren’t nobles. Many officials thought there ought to be laws to stop them from doing this, and for a while a law forbade them from riding in carts and chariots. Although they produced beautiful goods, and the demand for those goods was high, they were still looked down upon by the rest of the people.

76. Life in the Country
The vast majority of people in Han times were farmers who lived in the country. Their mud homes were one or two stories high, with tiled or thatched roofs and curtains on the windows. Barns and other buildings surrounded each house. Several families lived in one house and worked their fields together.

77. Cooperatives
In Han times, farmers still did not own their farms, but farms were larger in size because families had learned to team up. Together, they were able to produce more food than they needed, which allowed them to trade extra food for other items.

78. Peasant Life
Peasants went to bed at dusk and got up at dawn. They dressed in simple clothes made of scratchy dark cloth. They stuffed their clothes with paper and cloth to stay warm in the winter.
They ate rice, steamed dumplings, and fish flavored with garlic and onions. In the north, peasants ate wheat instead of rice. Compared to the Qin Dynasty, life was vastly improved.

79. Han Questions
1. How did archaeologists and scientists learn most of what they know about the Han Dynasty?
2. Why was education so important to the Han?
Teacher’s notes:
From the contents of Han tombs
It was the key to good government. Also it exposed students to Confucianism.

80. T’ang Dynasty T’ang Dynasty c. 600–900 CE The Golden Age of China
By 600 CE, in early medieval times, China had become the wonder of the world. It was a time of prosperity, gaiety, and experimentation. People tried new things, like bananas!
Teacher’s notes: The Tang Dynasty is spelled T’ang and Tang. Both are correct.

81. Growth of Buddhism
In T’ang times, people thought of Buddhism as a path that they could follow to enlightenment. Today, Buddhism is a major world religion. There are over 330 million Buddhists in the world.

82. Government Jobs
Examination day: You did not have to be a noble to hold a high position. To be assigned a job in high office in one of the many towns and villages, you had to pass the government exams. It was a route to riches and fame. On examination day—the day the tests were given—cities were thronged with horses and coaches.

83. The Arts/Tea
The arts: The T’ang empire is famous for brilliant stories, art, literature, music, and dance. Talented dancers and singers came from India and Korea to study.
Tea drinking and tea ceremonies became all the rage.

84. T’ang Houses
Houses in the large capital city of Ch’ang-an had baths, heaters, mechanical fans, fountains, ice-cooled rooms, mirrors, musical instruments (such as the harp), ceramics, spoons, and goblets of gold and silver. Servants and slaves waited on the rich. The pagoda look became popular during T’ang times.

85. Clothing/Styles
Clothing, hair, and cosmetics: Men had topknots. Women wore hats, some with little bells dangling from the edges. Women also used makeup. Eyebrows were carefully sculpted—in T’ang times, they
were shaped like little mountains, like this “^”. Nobles wore fancy hats and silk robes with jade belts.

86. Games/Sports
They played board games such as backgammon, and a game called “Go” (which is now the most popular game in Japan). Music, dancing, and archery were all popular. They played a version of football and enjoyed polo, which had been introduced from India.

87. Family
The days of human sacrifice were long over, but honoring one’s ancestors was still very important. Family members were expected to help and care for each other. When a girl married, she went to live with her husband’s family.

88. School
Only boys could go to school. They did not have to go to school, but it was free and encouraged. Girls learned at home. Education was so important that teachers were one of the five objects of worship (the other four were heaven, earth, the emperor, and parents).

89. Three Teachings
In T’ang times, Confucianism, Taoism, and Buddhism became known as the “Three Doctrines,” or the “Three Teachings.”
In T’ang times, a man might honor his ancestors by following the rigid rules of social behavior as dictated by Confucianism, attend a Buddhist pageant, and practice Taoist breathing exercises, all in the same day. These three doctrines were an important part of daily life.

90. Land Ownership
The T’ang distributed land equally to create a nation of free farmers. Each farmer received about 15 acres. Farmers ate beans, turnips, barley cakes, melons, peaches, pork and chicken, plums, lots of fish, and drank wine. In the south they ate rice and in the north, products made from wheat.

91. Nomads
The Western T’ang empire was peopled with nomads. Nomads did not grow food, but moved from place to place, tending herds of horses, goats and sheep. Their homes were huts built on wagons, so they could move easily. Clothing was made of wool or animal skins. Nomads ate milk and meat. They were traders, sometimes along the Silk Road.

92. T’ang Questions 1. How could you become rich during T’ang times?
2. Why is this period in ancient Chinese history called the “Golden Age of China”?
Teacher’s notes:
You could trade along the Silk Road and hope to become rich. You could take the government exam, pass it, and work your way up to a better job and a better life.
Each civilization has one period of time when art, literature, and reasonable government flourished. The label of “golden age” implies intellectual activity in all fields and stands as the model for all other time periods. Some historians believe that Han times were as good as T’ang times. Certainly both periods in ancient history saw intellectual change that improved the lives of the people.

93. Inventions
The ancient Chinese invented many things we use today. They invented paper, silk, matches, the wheelbarrow, gunpowder, the decimal system, the waterwheel, porcelain, lacquer, the pottery wheel, fireworks, paper money, the compass, the seismograph, tangrams, medicines, dominoes, jump rope, kites, the tea ceremony, the folding umbrella, ink, the animal harness, playing cards, printing, the abacus, wallpaper, and the crossbow.

94. Conclusion
The ancient Chinese were very clever people. Their culture was complex and made many lasting contributions to the world.
Although outsiders call this land China, after the Ch’in (Qin) empire, the Chinese today call themselves the people of Han.

95. Quiz
If you had to live in ancient China, besides being a king or a noble, what job would you like to have? Briefly explain why.
Name one dynasty in which you would not like to live and briefly explain why.
Teacher’s notes: Rather than a standard quiz, we have found that discussion questions such as these allow for a more complete review and comparison of dynasties. Although the above are standard questions, we think you may be surprised at the answers you hear.