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A Tour of China: Part One Under the Dynasties The Under the Dynasties tour includes ancient sites from Beijing and Xian (shee-EN). 1 of 4 earliest agricultral civs on earth Dynasty Xia Shang Zhou Qin Han Sui Tang Song Yuan Ming Qing The Dynasties 2200-1750 around 1700-1027 1027-256 221-206 206 BCE-220 CE 589-618 618-907 960-1271 1271-1368 1368-1644 1644-1911 Time Period BCE BCE BCE CE CE CE CE BCE CE CE Mandate of Heaven: Right to rule. Divine approval thought to be the basis of royal authority. Could lose it. The Great Wall was first united under the Qin dynasty . It is a series of walls 25 feet high and 15 feet wide and extends over 1,500 miles. It was built by about 700,000 laborers who piled up an estimated 180 million cubic meters of earth to form the core of the wall, which was supposedly built over the bodies of deceased workers. The wall was made to keep out the raiding nomads from the north. It did provide an easy method of transport for soldiers, goods and equipment. The Great Wall is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, but it is not protected by any specific laws or managed by any special office or curator. As a result, vandalism is visible. Tourism does provide business for these persistent vendors who were at the very top section of the “Danger Road” selling Great Wall labeled water, cigarettes, wine and postcards. Each day these men walk up the long trail to the wall (rather than pay the gondola fare) just to sell items to tourists. Emperor Shi Huangdi’s Tomb Army of Terracotta Warriors Found in a field outside of Xian in 1974, the first vault contains 6,000 figures of warriors and horses that are over 2,000 years old. The warriors held weapons that were still sharp when unearthed. The tomb discoveries have revealed important information about ancient battle formations and strategy, as well as a rigid military hierarchy. The vanguard of the army was the archers, followed by soldiers armed with spears and axes, then the battle chariots. Each soldier has unique facial features and expressions. Q: Who was Shi Huangdi and why did he create such an extensive tomb for himself? Shi Huangdi was the first emperor of the Qin Dynasty. Took throne at age 13. Totalitarian Rule. •Doubled China’s size •Unified China •Ordered all nobles to live in capital (approx. 120,000 families) and seized their land • Standardized legal code, currency, written language, as well as a weights and measures system. 4,000 mile highway system. • Demanded exorbitant taxes from his subjects. •Burned Confucian books and scholars. •Consumed by beliefs in longevity and reproduced his empire on earth to take it all with him in his life after death. Figure restoration is a meticulous and time consuming process. The soldiers are pieced back together and the adhesive putty is covered with a more authentic looking and less conspicuous colored paint. This is one of the residents of Xiyang village, who in 1974 was helping to dig a well and unearthed bronze weapons and pieces of broken terracotta. The group’s discovery led to the excavation of Qin Shi Huang’s tomb . There are still many figures to be uncovered, but archaeologists are waiting to find a way to preserve the paint found on the ancient warriors before conducting more digs. Today this discoverer signs books about the site for tourists, which provides an income and preserves his notoriety. The Temple of Heaven was constructed in 1530 under the Ming dynasty. It was used by the emperor, the Son of Heaven, as a prayer and ritual site to request good harvests, seek divine guidance and atone for the sins of the people. It is round because a circle represented heaven, while the earth was square. All architectural features are in multiples of nine b/c odd numbers were considered heavenly. A man plays a traditional Chinese instrument, called an erhu (are-who), in the park surrounding the Temple of Heaven. An erhu has two strings and produces a fiddle-like sound. Beijing: The Forbidden City The Forbidden City was the palace for Ming and Qing emperors until 1911. The palace was forbidden to everyone except the emperor, his concubines and eunuchs for nearly 500 years. The city was constructed in 1406 but has undergone extensive rebuilding because of fires and looting that occurred over the years. The throne room This is the emperor’s sedan. It was his mode of transport to and from the Temple of Heaven for his rituals and ceremonies. The eunuchs who defended the emperor’s private quarters had to pass a difficult test. They had to shoot an arrow from the inner courts into the hole of the stone target in the distance. If they failed they were not allowed to guard the emperor’s living quarters. There are several artistic details that adorn the Forbidden City. One is the presence of the 12 powerful animals. Note that the dragon is the last and largest animal, since it is symbolic of the emperor. Dragon head rainspouts-a decorative and functional feature in the Forbidden City. Lion heads appear on doors and bronze caldrons. The bronze caldrons served as water vats in case of fire. The ceiling paintings have symbolic colors, elaborate patterns and images of the dragon in imperial yellow. Maintaining the Forbidden City for the millions of tourists it attracts requires a lot of manual labor. One man restores damaged paint above the lintel, a woman sweeps the area clean, while men refurbish the central walkway with new blocks. Guardian lions at the gate: the male has the world in his paw while the female has a cub representing posterity in her paw. The dragon and pheasant stand before the Hall of Benevolence and Longevity. The dragon symbolizes the emperor and the pheasant the empress. A mythological creature greets visitors of the Summer Palace. It is believed that the creature will ward off evil spirits. It has a tiger’s body that is covered in scales, a dragon’s head, goat’s feet and horns. Traditional Qing style silk robes, hair pieces and shoes worn by women of the court. Traditional style boats move passengers along Kunming Lake for additional views of the Summer Palace. Emperor Qinglong expanded the Summer Palace in the 18th century, but the Empress Dowager, Cixi, began rebuilding it in 1888 (with money that was supposed to build a modern navy). The Summer Palace sits along the shores of Kunming Lake. Red lanterns light the way to Prince Gong’s garden opera house. The Beijing Opera, started in 1790 under Emperor Qinglong, is a mixture of singing, dancing, acrobatics and action packed fight sequences. Painted face roles are typically warriors, heroes, statesmen and demons. Elaborate costumes and make-up are specialties of the Beijing Opera. The mastery of weapons and well choreographed battle sequences keep spectators entertained. The End Citations: Liou, Caroline, et al. Lonely Planet China, 7th Edition. Melbourne: Lonely Planet Publications. 2000. Roberts, J.A.G. A Concise History of China. Cambridge: Harvard University Press. 1999. Your Task: Dynasty Extension Project • Goal: Expand your learning about the dynastic period of Chinese History. • Options: Review ideas on the list & pick one OR design your own project (must have a writing component). • Have fun learning about this fascinating era!