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Neolithic Period
The homo erectus
What is now China was
inhabited by Homo erectus
more than a million years ago.
Recent study shows that the
stone tools found at
Xiaochangliang site are
magnetostratigraphically dated
to 1.36 million years ago.
Homo Erectus was the first hominid believed to be part of the huntergatherer hominids. Known as "up-right" man,
NEOLITHIC AGE
• The Neolithic Age or the New Stone Age, was a period in the
development of human technology, beginning about 9500 BCE
in the Middle East that is traditionally considered the last part of
the Stone Age.
• The Neolithic followed the terminal Holocene Epipalaeolithic
period, beginning with the rise of farming, which produced the
"Neolithic Revolution" and ending when metal tools became
widespread in the Copper Age (chalcolithic) or Bronze Age.
• The Neolithic is not a specific chronological period, but rather a
suite of behavioral and cultural characteristics, including the use
of wild and domestic crops and the use of domesticated animals.
Three sovereigns and five emperors
• The Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors were a group of semimythological rulers and culture heroes from ancient China during
the period circa 2500 BC to 2100 BC. This period preceded
the Xia Dynasty.
• In myth, the three sovereigns were demigods
who used their abilities to help create
mankind and impart essential skills and
knowledge.
• The five emperors were exemplary sages
possessed of great moral character.
Three sovereigns: FU XI
• In Chinese mythology, Fu Xi or Fu
Hsi was the first of the Three
Sovereigns of ancient China.
• He is a culture hero reputed to be
the inventor of writing, fishing,
and trapping.
Three sovereigns: FU XI
Fu Xi and Nü Wa were the original
human
who
lived
on
the
mythological Kunlun Mountain.
One day they set up two
separated piles of fire, and the
fire eventually became one.
Under the fire, they decided to
become husband and wife.
Three sovereigns: Nüwa
Nüwa is a goddess in
ancient Chinese mythology. She
is best known for creating
mankind and repairing the
wall of heaven.
Three sovereigns: Nüwa
Nüwa is presented differently in so
many myths, she is responsible for
being a wife, sister, man, tribal
leader (or even emperor), creator,
maintainer, etc.
Most myths present Nüwa as
female in a procreative role after a
calamity.
Three sovereigns: Nüwa
Relief of Nuwa at the Ping Sien
Si Temple in Perak, Malaysia.
Another Story:
Long ago, when the world
first began, there were
two people, Nü Kua and
her older brother. They
lived on Mount K'un-lun.
They talked about becoming
husband and wife, but they felt
ashamed.
So the brother at once went with
his sister up Mount K'un-lun and
made this prayer:
"Oh Heaven, if Thou would
send us two forth as man
and wife, then make all the
misty vapor gather. If not,
then make all the misty
vapor disperse."
At this, the misty vapor immediately
gathered. When the sister became
intimate with her brother, they
plaited some grass to make a fan to
screen their faces.
Even today, when a man takes a
wife, they hold a fan, which is a
symbol of what happened long
ago.
Three sovereigns: shennong
"Divine Farmer",
also known
as the Emperor of the Five Grains,
was a legendary ruler of China and
culture hero reputed to have lived
some 5,000 years ago.
Three sovereigns: shennong
Shennong
has
been
thought to have taught the ancient
Chinese not only their practices
of agriculture, but also the use of
herbal drugs.
Three sovereigns: shennong
In Chinese mythology Shennong,
besides having taught humans the use
plow together
with other aspects of
basic agriculture, the use
of
the
of medicinal plants, and having been a
god of the burning wind.
five emperors
1. The Yellow
Emperor or Huangdi
A legendary Chinese
sovereign and culture hero.
He was portrayed as the
originator of the centralized
state, a patron of esoteric
arts, a cosmic ruler, and a
lord of the underworld
five emperors
The term di on its own
could also refer to the
deities associated with the
sacred
mountains and
five
colors. Huangdi (黃帝), the
"yellow di", was one of
the latter.
five emperors
2. Zhuanxu (a.k.a. Gaoyang) – is
a mythological monarch of
ancient China. A grandson of
the Yellow Emperor, He made
contributions to a unified
calendar, astrology, religion,
unified calendar, astrology, rel
igion reforms and forbade
close-kin marriage.
five emperors
3. Kù or Dì Kù, (a.k.a. Gāoxīn Shì)
– was a mythical Emperor of
China
during
the
Three
Sovereigns and Five Emperors
Period. He was son of Jiăo JÍ, the
grandson of Shăohào and the
great grandson of Huang-di, the
Yellow Emperor.
five emperors
4. Emperor
Yao
–
was
a
legendary Chinese ruler, His ancestral
name is Yi Qi or Qi, clan name is
Taotang given name is Fangxun, as
the second son to Emperor Ku and
Qingdu. He is also known as Tang Yao.
Often extolled as the morally
perfect and smart sage-king,
Yao's benevolence and diligence
served as a model to future
Chinese monarchs and emperors.
five emperors
Yao is said to have invented
the game of Weiqi.
five emperors
“Go” is an adversarial game
with the objective of
surrounding a larger total
area of the board with one's
stones than the opponent.
As the game progresses, the
players position stones on the
board to map out formations
and potential territories.
five emperors
The
four
liberties
(adjacent empty points)
of a single black stone
(A), as White reduces
those liberties by one
(B, C, and D). When
Black has only one
liberty left (D), that
stone is "in atari".
White may capture that
stone (remove from
board) with a play on its
last liberty (at D-1).
five emperors
5. Shun was a 23rd-22nd
century BC leader of
ancient China, among
the Three Sovereigns
and Five Emperors,
whose half-century of
rule was one of the
longest in Chinese
history.
five emperors
5. Shun was a 23rd-22nd
century BC leader of
ancient China, among
the Three Sovereigns
and Five Emperors,
whose half-century of
rule was one of the
longest in Chinese
history.
five emperors
Shun is also renowned as
the originator of the music
called Dashao, a
symphony of nine Chinese
musical instruments.
five emperors
LEGACY
These semi-mythical kings are said to have helped
introduce the use of fire, taught people how to
build houses and invented farming.
The Yellow Emperor's wife is credited with the
invention of silk culture. The discovery of medicine,
the invention of the calendar and Chinese script
are also credited to the kings. After their era, Yu the
Great founded the Xia dynasty.
The xia dynasty
The Xia Dynasty is the first dynasty in China
to be described in ancient historical
chronicles such as Bamboo Annals, Classic
of History and Records of the Grand
Historian.
The dynasty was established by the
legendary Yu the Great after Shun, the last
of the Five Emperors gave his throne to
him.
The xia dynasty
Bamboo Annals
The Bamboo Annals, also
known as the Ji Tomb
Annals, is a chronicle of
ancient China.
It begins at the earliest
legendary times and
extends to 299 BC, with
the later centuries
focusing on the history of
the State of Wei in the
Warring States period.
The xia dynasty
HUAXIA - the ancestral people
of the Han Chinese.
It has been documented that
the Huaxia tribe founded the
Xia dynasty.
Also known as the Yin Dynasty, according to traditional
historiography, ruled in the Yellow River valley in the
second millennium BC, succeeding the Xia Dynasty and
followed by the Zhou Dynasty.
The Yellow River at the Hukou Falls.
The Shang Dynasty was
established by Emperor Tang
in 1675 BC after overthrowing
the tyrannical rule of Jie,
(the last emperor of the Xia
Dynasty).
The Shang Dynasty lasted over 600 years and
was led by
30 different emperors.
Politics of the shang
Drawing from the 'lessons' of Jie,
Emperor Tang (the first ruling king
of the Shang dynasty) implemented
a series of innovative measures with
the help of his two ministers.
Emperor Tang is best known for:
1. abolishing the persecution and
oppression of the people carried
out by Jie, and
2. for governing his people with
benevolence and compassion.
Politics of the shang
• The dynasty flourished through the
reign of the ninth (9th) emperor.
• Social problems began to emerge
and the emperor's power gradually
declined.
Economy of shang
The rulers of Shang Dynasty attached great importance to
agriculture, aquaculture and handicraft industry.
1. AGRICULTURE - farming
2. AQUACULTURE - fishing
3. HANDICRAFT:
• bronze wares
• porcelain wares were also invented during this time.
• jade carving
• woven silk fabrics - displayed the great skill and capabilities
of the artisans.
BRONZE Wares
The bronze wares in particular
reached a high level of artistry that
signified the advanced civilization of
Shang Dynasty.
The
most
famous
bronze work from this
time is the Simuwu
Quadripod – it is the
largest and heaviest
Chinese bronze vessel,
weighing 832.84 kg
(about 1836 pounds).
A late Shang dynasty
bronze ding vessel
with taotie motif
BRONZE Wares
taotie
The
is a motif commonly
found on Chinese ritual bronze vessels
from the Shang and Zhou dynasty.
The design typically consists of a zoomorphic mask, described
as being frontal, bilaterally symmetrical, with a pair of raised
eyes and typically no lower jaw area.
BRONZE WEAPONS
Shang infantry were armed with a variety of stone and bronze
weaponry, including máo spears, yuè pole-axes, ge polebased dagger-axes, composite bows, and bronze or leather
helmets.
A bronze axe of the Shang
dynasty
Bronze yuè axe
BRONZE WEAPONS
Jade CARVING
Objects made of jade are thought to have played a ceremonial
role in many Late Neolithic cultures. During the Shang dynasty,
artisans had full command of the artistic and technical language
developed in the diverse Late Neolithic cultures that had jadeworking traditions.
The carving of threedimensional animals, used as
charms or decoration, is an
innovation that may derive
from the interest in natural
forms found in the bronze art
of the period.
Jade Buffalo, late Shang dynasty
(ca. 1600–1050 B.C.)
Jade CARVING
In Chinese, "jade"(yu 玉) refers to a
fine, beautiful stone with a warm
color and rich luster, that is skillfully
carved.
In Chinese culture, jade symbolizes
nobility, perfection, constancy, and
immortality.
Jade CARVed animal design
Zhu-Que Bird
jade sculpture of what
most resembles a
Hadrosaur dinosaur
Jade carved tiger
Jade phoenix from the
tomb of Fuhao
Oracle scripts
Script on animal bones and
tortoise shells.
The Shang is very famous for its
augury (signs/omen) and the
existing Jiaguwen (inscriptions on
animal bones and tortoise shells) is
the witness of augury of the time.
Oracle scripts
Augury - A sign of what will
happen in the future; an omen.
The FALL OF SHANG
DYNASTY
During the final
period of the
dynasty, the country
was in
turmoil and vassals
from other countries
began to rebel.
The FALL OF SHANG
DYNASTY
Despite the turmoil and the impending uprising,
Emperor Shang Zhou (the last emperor of Shang
Dynasty) led a luxurious life and tortured both his
ministers and his people.
This intensified conflicts across the kingdom.
Most practically for an
English speaker, "joe."
The name Zhou used to be
spelled Chou or Chow,
depending on the Chinese
region
The ZHOU dynasty
• The Zhou Dynasty was a Chinese dynasty that followed
the Shang Dynasty and preceded the Qin Dynasty.
• Although the Zhou Dynasty lasted longer than any other
dynasty in Chinese history.
• During the Zhou Dynasty, the use of iron was introduced
to China, though this period of Chinese history produced
what many consider the zenith of Chinese bronze-ware
making.
Bronze-ware
A Western Zhou bronze gui vessel, c. 1000 BC
A Western Zhou ceremonial bronze of
cooking-vessel form inscribed to
record that the King of Zhou gave a
fiefdom to Shi You, ordering that he
inherit the title as well as the land and
people living there.
Bronze-ware
Western Zhou Dynasty musical bronze bell
bronze ritual food vessel (ding)
5th-4th century BC
Feudalism and the rise of Confucian
bureaucracy
Western writers often describe the Zhou period as 'feudal'
because the Zhou's early rule invites comparison with medieval
rule in Europe but apart from some similarities in the
decentralized system there are a number of important
differences.
One obvious difference is that the Zhou ruled from walled cities
rather than castles. The Chinese term for the Zhou system
is fēngjiàn. When the dynasty was established, the conquered
land was divided into hereditary fiefs that eventually became
powerful in their own right. The fiefs or states themselves tended
to become feudally subdivided.
ZHOU dynasty philosophy
During the Zhou Dynasty, the origins
of native Chinese philosophy developed,
its initial stages beginning in the
6th century BC.
ZHOU dynasty philosophy
The greatest Chinese philosophers, those who
made the greatest impact on later generations
of Chinese, were:
• Confucius, founder of Confucianism, and
• Laozi, founder of Taoism.
ZHOU dynasty philosophy
Confucius was a Chinese
teacher, editor, politician,
and philosopher of the
Spring and Autumn period
of Chinese history.
ZHOU dynasty philosophy
The philosophy of
Confucius emphasized
personal and
governmental morality,
correctness of social
relationships, justice and
sincerity.
ZHOU dynasty philosophy
Golden Rule:
"What you do not wish
for yourself, do not do to
others."
ZHOU dynasty philosophy
Laozi
Taoist myths state that Laozi
was conceived when his mother
gazed upon a falling star.
He supposedly remained in her
womb for 62 years before being
born while his mother was
leaning against a plum tree.
ZHOU dynasty philosophy
Laozi
"Those who know do not say.
Those who say do not know.“
"A good traveler has no fixed
plans, and is not intent on
arriving.“
"Without Darkness, there can be
no Light."
ZHOU dynasty philosophy
Taoism, also known as Daoism, is a religious
or philosophical tradition
of Chinese origin which emphasizes living in
harmony with the Tao.
ZHOU dynasty philosophy
Taoism tends to emphasize various themes
such as naturalness, spontaneity, simplicity,
detachment from desires, and most important of
all, wu wei.
non-action or non-doing.
An "attitude of genuine non-action, motivated by a lack of desire
to participate in human affairs"
The “li” Ritual system
Established during the Western period, the Li ritual system
encoded an understanding of manners as an expression of
the social hierarchy, ethics, and regulation concerning
material life; the corresponding social practices became
idealized within Confucian ideology.
The system was canonized in the Book of Rites, Zhouli,
and Yili compendiums of the Han Dynasty (206 BC–220 AD),
thus becoming the heart of the Chinese imperial ideology.
The “li” Ritual system
While the system was initially a respected body of concrete
regulations, the fragmentation of the Western Zhou period
led the ritual to drift towards moralization and
formalization in regard to:
• The five orders of Chinese nobility.
• Ancestral temples (size, legitimate number of pavilions)
• Ceremonial regulations (number of ritual vessels, musical
instruments, people in the dancing troupe)
Other contribution
China's first projects of hydraulic engineering were initiated
during the Zhou Dynasty, ultimately as a means to aid
agricultural irrigation.
The chancellor of Wei, Sunshu Ao, who served King Zhuang
of Chu, dammed a river to create an enormous
irrigation reservoir in modern-day northern Anhui province.
Other contribution
China's first projects of hydraulic
engineering were initiated during
the Zhou Dynasty, ultimately as a
means to aid agricultural irrigation.
Other contribution
Hydraulic engineering as a subdiscipline of civil engineering is
concerned with the flow and
conveyance of fluids, principally
water and sewage.
Terra cotta army
an extensive terra cotta army was
found at the emperor's burial site. The
army consisted of 6,000 clay soldiers
protecting the tomb a possible
substitute for the living people who
were previously buried with the rulers.
Terra cotta army
The figures, dating from
approximately the late third
century BCE,were discovered in
1974 by local farmers in Lintong
District, Xi'an, Shaanxi province.
Terra cotta army
The figures vary in height according to
their roles, with the tallest being the
generals.
The figures include
warriors, chariots and horses.
Estimates from 2007 were that the
three pits containing the Terracotta
Army held more than 8,000 soldiers,
130 chariots with 520 horses and 150
cavalry horses.
The qin dynasty
• the first imperial dynasty of China, lasting from 221 to 207 BC.
• The Qin state derived its name from its heartland of Qin, in
modern-day Shaanxi.
• The strength of the Qin state was greatly increased by the
legalist reforms of Shang Yang in the 4th century BC.
• In the mid and late third century BC, the Qin accomplished a
series of swift conquests, first ending the powerless Zhou
Dynasty, and eventually destroying the remaining six states of
the major states to gain control over the whole of China,
resulting in an unified China.
shihuang
• The Qin came to power in 221BC
as one of the western states that
existed during the Warring States
Period.
• Its leaders conquered the other
warring states and unified China
for the first time.
• A ruler, the First Emperor, or Qin
Emperor Shihuang, was named
inciting the long emperor tradition
in China.
Qin dynasty weponry
The Qin, which was
not
the
most
culturally advanced
of
the
Warring
States, was the
strongest in terms of
military. The empire
utilized many new
technologies
in
warfare, especially
the cavalry.
Qin Dynasty composite bow arrows (top) and
crossbow bolts (bottom)
The legacy of qin dynasty
• During its reign over China, the Qin Dynasty achieved
increased trade, improved agriculture, and military
security. This was due to the abolition of landowning
lords, to whom peasants had formerly held allegiance.
• The central government now had direct control of the
masses, giving it access to a much larger workforce. This
allowed for the construction of ambitious projects, such as
a wall on the northern border, now known as the Great
Wall of China.
• The Qin is most likely where the name China originated.
The legacy of qin dynasty
The Great Wall
was built in the
north, to protect
against invaders
and roads and
irrigation canals
were also built
throughout the
country.
Bronze at qin dynasty
Bronze Chariot and Horses.
The reforms of qin dynasty
Qin Dynasty also introduced several
reforms:
• currency, weights and measures
were standardized.
• a better system of writing was
established.
• The Qin's military was also
revolutionary in that it used the
most recently developed weaponry,
transportation, and tactics.
Fall of qin dynasty
Despite all of these accomplishments, the Qin Emperor was
not a popular leader.
The public works and taxes were too great a burden for the
population. It seemed the emperor could not be satisfied.
Also, the nobility disliked him because they were deprived of all
of their power and relocated.
Finally, the emperor attempt to wash out all traces of the old
dynasties led to the infamous burning of books and burying of
scholars incident. The writings of the great philosophers of the
One Hundred Schools period were burned and more than 400
opponents were executed.
Fall of qin dynasty
• The Qin reign came to an end shortly after the First
Emperor's death.
• The Qin Emperor Shihuang only ruled for 37 years; he
died suddenly in 210BC.
• His son took the throne as the Second Emperor, but
was quickly overthrown, and the Han dynasty began in
206BC.