Transcript The Five Classics

We have been learning about two
different civilizations, Mesopotamia
between two large rivers about 5,000
years ago and Egypt along the Nile
River.
We are about to discover another
civilization that developed by the
Yangtze River and the Yellow River in
China.
People settled there for the same
reasons that they did in Mesopotamia
and Egypt.
Achievements of the Ancient
China - Writing
About 4,000 BC, the Chinese
invented a type of writing
with characters that represent
meanings rather than sounds.
The characters started as
pictures, but were simplified
over time to make them easier
to write.
The first writing was carved
on animal bones; then they
painted characters on bamboo
strips and silk.
Achievements of the Ancient
China - Paper
The Chinese invented paper about
105 AD.
They cut bamboo reeds, hemp,
mulberry bark, and silk rags and
soaked them in water to soften
them; the mixture was boiled,
mashed, and pounded into pulp; a
fine screen was dipped into the pulp
to gather a thin film of fibers; the
screen was pressed to remove excess
water; the mixture was them rolled,
stretched and dried in the sun to
form paper.
Paper was much easier to write on
than any other material.
Achievements of the Ancient
China – Printing
In the 8th century, the
Chinese invented block
printing.
They carved characters and
pictures into blocks of
wood.
The raised portions of the
block were covered with ink
and printed into sheets of
paper.
The first book was printed
in the 9th century.
Achievements of the Ancient
China – Silk
About 3,500 years ago, the Chinese
learned how to make silk thread from
the cocoons of the silkworm.
About one week after the silkworms
spin their cocoons, the cocoons are
steamed or baked to kill the baby
silkworms.
The cocoons are rinsed in hot water to
loosen the tightly woven strands of silk.
The strands were unwound onto a spool
to make a thread about ½ mile long
6 threads were twisted together to
make thread strong enough for
spinning.
The Chinese kept this process a secret
for 3,000 years.
Achievements of the Ancient
China - Astronomy
By 350 BC, astronomers
had drawn maps of the
stars and classified 1,400
stars into 284
constellations.
They were able to predict
and explain eclipses,
comets, and the aurora
borealis.
They calculated the orbit of
the moon and made
accurate observation of
sunspot activity.
Achievements of the Ancient
China – Inventions
The Chinese discovered the
formula to make gunpowder
and used it to make fireworks.
They made a wheelbarrow to
life heavy objects.
They discovered magnetism and
made the first compass by
floating magnets in bowls of
water.
They used the compass for
navigation and to check that a
new building was facing in the
proper direction for good luck.
Achievements of the Ancient China –
Inventions
The Chinese invented the
waterwheel as the power
source of a clock.
They invented the first clock.
It was 30 feet high in the
shape of a tower. Buckets of
water and levers in the
waterwheel turned the wheel
and rang bells every 15
minutes. The inventor, Su
Song, left very detailed
drawings that have been used
to re-make the clock.
Achievements of the Ancient China –
Inventions
The Chinese invented the
seismograph to detect
earthquakes during the Han
Dynasty (202 AD). The
seismograph was a metal jar
surrounded by metal toads.
During an earthquake, a
pendulum inside the metal jar
moved and caused a small metal
ball to fall into the mouth of one
of the toads. The sound of metal
against metal warned of an
earthquake. The position of the
metal toad indicated the general
location of the earthquake.
Achievements of the Ancient China –
Inventions
The Chinese invented the
process of making cast
iron by 700 BC. They
melted the ore and cast
it in molds.
They invented porcelain
during the T’ang Dynasty
(618 AD). Porcelain is a
type of pottery shaped on
a potter’s wheel or in a
mold. It is then painted,
glazed, and fired in a kiln
at high temperatures.
We call it china today.
Achievements of the Ancient
China – Medicine
The Chinese used herbs to
treat illnesses.
They used kaolin for upset
stomachs, a remedy still used
today.
They were the first to
inoculate for small pox.
They used cold baths to bring
down fevers.
They used acupuncture, a
method of relieving pain and
of treating disease by inserting
needles into the body at
certain points.
Achievements of the Ancient
China – Art
Porcelain was used to make dishes and pots.
Jade, a hard green mineral, was used to
make jewelry, statuary, and other objects.
The Chinese believed jade exemplified the
five essential virtues: charity,
trustworthiness, courage, wisdom, and
fairness.
Lacquer was a material made from the sap
of a special type of oak tree.
The sap was heated to make it shiny and
hard, like glass.
Lacquer was used with dyes to decorate
furniture and houses.
Gardening was an art. The cities had
peaceful gardens and parks with water lilies
representing truth, chrysanthemums
representing culture, and bamboo
representing strength.
Achievements of the Ancient
China – Philosophy
The Chinese believed that
everything in nature needed
to be balanced; everything
had an opposite side that
was very important. The
opposite forces were called
yin and yang.
Yin was earthly, female,
dark, and wet.
Yang was heavenly, male,
light, and dry.
Happiness required a
balance between the two.
Achievements of the Ancient
China – Philosophy
Confucius was a famous philosopher
born in 551 BC during a time of
constant warfare in China.
He wanted to restore peace and to
have people respect each other (do
to other people as you would like
them to do to you).
He set down his rules in a book
called the Analects.
It was the duty of a superior person
to look after the inferior one.
Children need to respect their
parents and the people needed to
respect their ruler.
His teachings developed into a
religion.
Achievements of the Ancient
China – Religions
Lao-tsu developed the
philosophy of Taoism that
also became a religion.
His philosophy was that
people needed to live simply
and close to nature.
Buddhism was brought from
India.
Buddha believed that people
should give up all earthly
desires in order to be happy.
Achievements of the Ancient
China – Literature
The Chinese have been
writing books for 3,000
years.
The Five Classics containing
the thoughts of Confucius
and The Classic of the Way
and the Virtue by Lao-tsu
were the most influential
books.
Achievements of the Ancient
China – Architecture
The Great Wall of China was built
in 221 BC to protect the northern
border of China from invading.
Tribes.
The wall was over 4,000 miles
long, and 16-32 feet high with
watchtowers located every 290
feet to 585 feet along the top.
There was a walkway for guards
along the top.
Walls enclosed cities to protect
them from enemies.
The emperor lived in a palace with
high walls inside the most
important city.
The cities were square, with
straight streets meeting at right
angles.
The roofs of the houses were
curved to keep out evil spirits.
Achievements of the Ancient
China – Farming
The Chinese cut
terraces into
hillsides to make
the most of the
land.
They had
complex
irrigation
systems to
water the fields.
Terms to Know
Bronze Age – 3000 BCE to about
1000 BCE, refers to a time of
many advancements in early
civilizations.
Dynasties – successive rulers from
the same family.
Silk Road – a trade route between
China and the West.
Choose a topic to research and add it to our timeline. You’ll want to have
a fair amount of information about your topic and should include a
picture (hand-drawn or computer generated). You will want to tell us as
much about your topic as you can, so be thorough in your research. When
doing your research be sure to answer the following questions: Who?
What? Where? When? Why? How? Spelling, punctuation and neatness
counts. Our timeline will be displayed for the entire school to see, along
with parents and any visitor to view and admire.
You will be working on this project alone, so please make sure to check
with yourself when you are available to work on your project.  You will
have some time allotted in each history class, but you can work on it
during your work time or at home. More details to come!