Joseph Wu
9/25/10
Ancient Mythology
盤古開天
Pan Gu Kai Tien
女媧造人
Nu Wa Zhao Ren
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pangu
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/N%C3%BCwa
Early Human Beings
From Paleolithic to Neolithic Ages
 Yuanmou Man 元谋人 1.7 million years
ago
 Lantian Man 蓝田人 0.5-0.6 million
years ago
 “Peking Man” 北京人 0.4 -0.5 million
years ago
 the Paleolithic Age
 the Neolithic Ages
 Unearthed material: specimens of
painted pottery (仰韶文化 Yangshao
Culture); specimens of black pottery
(龙山文化 Longshan Culture)
Origin of “炎黃子孫”
4000 years ago, Yandi and Huangdi are the legendary heroes
Their contributions are
- Taught people how to build shelters and grow crops
- Invented compasses
- Traditional Chinese medicine
- Calendar
- Defeat enermy, ChiYou and maintain peace in Huaxia 华夏
region
-Hua ren 华人 = Chinese
Dynasties and Map
1
A new
dynasty
comes to
power
Start
Emperor is
defeated
Rebels united
strong
leader,
attack
emperor
Respect lost,
rebels attack
landlords
Emperor
reforms
govt,
improves
efficiency
Life
improves,
lower taxes,
more farming
Problems
begin (wars,
invasions)
The
Dynastic
Cycle
Droughts,
floods,
famines
Taxes go up,
conscription,
farming
neglected
Increased
spending,
corruption
Xia, Shang, Zhou (1299)
oracle bones scripts
甲骨文
Spring and Autumn (294)
Schools of Chinese thought
Confucius:
- the political rule should be based on virtue not on force.
- everyone was equal in education and without
discrimination no matter what their social status.
- proposed teaching students according to their aptitude.
the School of Law or Legalism : advocating ruling the country
with means of strictly enforced law
Taoism: concept of ying and yang (all things have their
opposites; one must seek the balance of life)
The doctrine of Mo Zi: Advocating that all action must be
utilitarian and pacifism.
Warring Period (254)
The Art of War – the world
first treatise on military
science.
Qin (15)
Qin Emperor: First emperor in China
- First feudal dynasty to rule all of China
-Connected the walls in the warring state to make 5000-km long
Great Wall of China.
- Standardized language and writing
- Limited to one currency
- Standardize measurement and axle length (equivalent to our
current ISO system)
- Dissenting scholars and trying to eliminate school of Chinese
thought
Terra Cotta Army
The Great Wall
Han 汉 (426)
Achievements
- Overthrown Qin
- Revitalized confucianism
- Instituted merit-Based appointments
for government positions
-Establish silk route
- Paper invented
Han Artifacts
Imperial
Seal
Han Ceramic
Horse
Seismograph
Sui 隋 : The Grand Canal
Tang 唐 Dynasty (289)
 Liberal attitude towards all religions.
 Spread of Buddhism in China
 New technologies:
Printing --> moveable print
 Porcelain
 Gunpowder
 Mechanical clocks

 Golden Age of foreign relations with
other countries such as Japan, Korea,
Persia  cosmopolitan culture
 Chinatown = Tang Ren Jie 唐人街
Tang Organization
Song 宋 Dynasty (319)
 Increased emphasis on education & cheaper
availability of printed books.
 Magnetic compass
makes China a great
sea power!
Song Rice Cultivation
Yuan 元 Dynasty (162)
Marco Polo’s Travels
Ming 明 Dynasty (276)
 Culture & Art
 Increased literacy leads to increased interest in
cultural expressions, ideas, and things:




Literature.
Painting.
Ceramics.
Opera.
 Architecture :
Hundreds of thousands of
workers constructed the Forbidden City.
Forbidden City
Admiral Zheng He
 Ming “Treasure Fleet”
 Each ship 400’ long & 160’ wide
 Chinese “Columbus?”
1371-1435
Zheng He’s Exploration
Ming Porcelain / Ceramics
Ming Vases
Qing 清 Dynasty (224)
 Well-organized adminstration
- Ministry of Personnel
- Ministry of Revenue
- Ministry of Rites
- Ministry of Military
- Ministry of Criminal Justice
- Ministry of Public Works
 Mandate of Heaven was built
Geography
Major Cities
Shanghai
Taipei
Hong Kong
Sichuan Province
Hunan Province
Taiwan
Thank you!
Reference
 http://www.fsus.fsu.edu/academics/socia
lstudies/cuccio/APWorldHistoryPowerPoin
ts/Chapter2/ChinaQintoMing.ppt.
 http://www.mnsu.edu/emuseum/prehistor
y/china/map/map.html