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ANCIENT CHINA

ANCIENT CHINA. PRE-HISTORIC CHINA. Paleolithic China: Peking Man. Fossils found in 1920’s -30’s -- date to 500,000 bce Zhoukoudian Cave -- 40 km. south of Beijing Classified as HOMO ERECTUS. Neolithic China ca. 12,000-2000 bce. Neolithic China ca. 12,000-2000 bce.

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ANCIENT CHINA

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  1. ANCIENT CHINA

  2. PRE-HISTORIC CHINA

  3. Paleolithic China:Peking Man • Fossils found in 1920’s -30’s -- date to 500,000 bce • Zhoukoudian Cave -- 40 km. south of Beijing • Classified as HOMO ERECTUS

  4. Neolithic Chinaca. 12,000-2000 bce

  5. Neolithic Chinaca. 12,000-2000 bce • Although Neolithic period began ca. 12,000 bce in China, good evidence dates back only to 4,000 bce • Largest concentration of agriculture near Yellow River: millet was main crop • Much wetter geography: most of N. China was lakes and marshes, and central China was covered with enormous lake. • Silk production in Northern China began even before the Neolithic period. • Clustered dwelling suggest importance of kinship

  6. 9000 year-old flutes These 9,000-year-old Chinese flutes are believed to be the oldest known playable instruments. They're made from the forelimbs of a rare crane.

  7. Yangshao Culture5000-2500 bce • Primitive techniques of cultivation: millet main crop • Semisubterranean houses in mountains of northern and western China • Their handcrafted, Painted Pottery occasionally bears a single incised sign that may be a forerunner of Chinese writing • Domesticated the dog and the pig

  8. Lung-shan Culture ca.2500-1000 bce • More advanced agriculture • Permanent settlements in the eastern plains, and expansion into Manchuria, and Central and South China. • Black Pottery • Practiced ancestor worship • Domesticated pig, dog, sheep and ox

  9. Jade • Early Chinese describe jade as embodying five virtues: • Benevolence is typified by its luster that is bright and warm • Integrity by its translucency • Wisdom by its sonorous ring when struck • Courage by its hardness • Steadfastness by its durability Ornament in shape of pig-dragon (zhulong)Neolithic, Hongshan culture ca. 3600-2000 bce

  10. Neolithic Jade • Modern jade includes nephrite and jadeite: only nephrite used in Neolithic times • Ranges widely in color, from pale to dark green, from white to yellow, from brown to black. • Extremely hard, so inordinately difficult to work. It cannot be carved, but must be ground by a material harder than itself • The Neolithic tools of choice were probably a gut saw and bamboo drill together with an abrasive in the form of river sand or sludge. • Earliest pieces date ca. 7000 bce

  11. Hongshan Jade • Far to the northeast, in the Manchurian hills, archaeologists have uncovered traces of a ceremonial center at Niuheliang associated with the Hongshan culture (4700-2920 B.C.). • Jade objects found in tombs

  12. Liangzhu Jade Congs • Found almost exclusively in burial contexts, indicating ritual and religious significance • Unique form of a circle within a square suggests some cosmological significance. • Perhaps the circle symbolizes heaven, and the square symbolizes earth

  13. Xia Dynasty 21st-16th c. bce

  14. Xia Dynasty 21st-16th c. bce • First prehistoric dynasty: descendants of Lung-Shan culture • Early bronze age sites in Henan first discovered in 1928 • Urban sites, bronze implements, and tombs that point to the existence of Xia civilization in the same locations cited in ancient Chinese texts • Evolutionary stage between the late neolithic cultures and the urban civilization of the Shang dynasty.

  15. HISTORIC DYNASTIES

  16. Shang Dynasty16th-11th c. bce

  17. Shang Dynasty • Central Yellow River Valley • Oldest examples of Chinese writing • Hunters and farmers • Brilliant bronze culture • Cities • Cheng Chow (16th c. bc) • Anyang (C. 1384-1111 bc) Ornament of the late Shang, 7 cm The figurine shows the costume and headdress usually worn by people in the Shang Dynasty

  18. Shang Social Organization • City-states under the nominal rule of a high king • Proto-feudalism. • The area under the jurisdiction of the king quite probably was small, perhaps not more than 100-200 miles in any direction from Anyang. • Traces of a family ruling system and of ancestor-worship are discernible. • Rigidly patriarchal society. Shang Tang - the first ruling king of the Shang dynasty

  19. Writing • Oracle bones used for divination. • A question was written on the bone, which was then fired and a T shaped crack was produced to be interpreted; the interpretation was then written on the bone. • After the predicted event occurred, the date of the occurrence was also written on the bone.

  20. Astronomy and Calendar Oracle bone with record of solar eclipse Ox bone inscribed with a table of the Heavenly Stems and Earthly Branches

  21. ZhongqiShang Bronzes • Ritual bronze vessels • Range from the very small and light to very large • Bronze vessels are called "zhongqi" or heavy vessels in Chinese.

  22. 4 Elements of Zhongqi • Sophisticated bronze technology • Li-qi: ritual art -- used for worship, not utilitarian • Restricted decoration and shape • Shang bronze types were copied and reused later in Chinese history, even into the nineteenth century Taotie

  23. Taotie This pattern appears on nearly all Shang bronzes, and has been interpreted as a vague suggestion of an animal's head. The animal is unclear, as are many of the elements of the decoration, so it is called zoomorphic: shaped like an animal.

  24. Shang Religion • The Shang worshipped the "Shang Ti," a supreme god over lesser gods, the sun, the moon, the wind, the rain, and other natural forces and places. • Highly ritualized, ancestor worship • Sacrifice to the gods and the ancestors • When a king died, hundreds of slaves and prisoners were often sacrificed and buried with him.

  25. Woman Warrior: Fu Hao13th c. bce • The tomb of Fu Hao is the only royal Shang tomb to have been found unlooted.   • The floor level housed the royal corpse and most of the utensils and implements buried with her.  • Below the corpse was a small pit holding the remains of 6 dogs, and the skeletons of 16 humans.  • Fu Hao was mentioned in oracle bone inscriptions as the consort of King Wu Ding and a general who participated in several campaigns.

  26. ZHOU DYNASTY 1027 bc-221 bc

  27. Periods of Zhou Dynasty • 771 bce -- Zhou invaded by barbarians allied with rebel lords; king killed. Capital moved eastward to Luoyang in Henan Province • Western Zhou: 1027-771 bce • Eastern Zhou 770-221 bce • 770-476 bce: Spring and Autumn Period • 475-221 bce: Warring States Period

  28. Zhou Dynasty • Introduced organized agriculture • Feudal society • Land grants in return for support in war and loyalty • Ruler: Tianor “Son of Heaven • Principal of societal relationships illustrated in the Book of Odesand the Book of Rituals • Confucianism and Taoism introduced

  29. Zhou Jade: Ritual • Changes in ritual and funeral custom manifested themselves in the appearance of jade-piece masks and, much later, jade burial suits. • Belief that jade could protect the corpse from decay, thereby providing the spirit with a "living" home. • The pieces of this jade mask were sewn on a silk veil to define the facial features of the deceased.

  30. Musical Instruments Bian zhong was the main ritual instrument played at sacrificial activities or feasts of aristocrats in the Western Zhou Dynasty. Percussion instrument of Western Zhou, height 38.5-48 cm

  31. Qin (Chin) Dynasty 221 bce -206 bce First unified the country by subjugating the Warring States Established central bureaucracy Legalism supplanted Confucianism: scholars persecuted and books burned Standardized writing, currency, weights and measures Qin Shihuangdi

  32. Qin Building Projects • Used forced labor of convicts and peasants • Roads and canals • Palaces • Connected fortification walls to build 5000 kilometer Great Wall

  33. Mausoleum of Qin Emperor ShiHuangdi (First Emperor) • Qin ShiHuangdi’s Mausoleum was discovered in 1974 by farmers digging a well. • The 13 year-old emperor had ordered 800,000 workers to build his tomb. • Terra Cotta Army • Rebellions broke out after Emperor’s death in 210 bce: dynasty overthrown after only 15 years of rule

  34. ConfuciusK’ung fu-tzu or Kongfuzi • 551-479 bc • Son of aristocrat, raised in poverty • Itinerant teacher • Sayings collected in The Analects • Possibly edited The Book of Songs

  35. Confucianism • Importance of traditional values: self-control, filial piety, propriety, ritual • Individual virtue leads to societal virtue • Contextual morality -- guided by circumstances of a particular problem • Obedience contingent upon benevolence

  36. Confucian Values • Li:propriety, ceremony, civility. 4 basic rules of human conduct: courtesy, politeness, good manners, respect (reverence for age) • Jen (Ren):respect for self and others:”Do not do to others what you do not want done to you.” Charity and courtesy • Te:virtue, the power of moral example as in a strong leader who guides by example or in the forces of nature • Wen:the arts of peace: music, poetry, art -- conducive to harmony and order and a model of excellence. Traditional Chinese art always strives for beauty.

  37. The Six Relationships Obedience in The Six Relationships is contingent upon the superior members observing their duty to be benevolent and caring. Older Friend Ruler Teacher Subject Student YoungerFriend

  38. The Mandate of Heaven • The moral order of the Universe: right and wrong • Fate: Life and death are beyond our control. • The right to rule: knowing and observing the moral order of the Universe • The judgement of history: losing the Mandate of Heaven results in loss of power.

  39. Lao Tzu or Lao Zi“Old Sage” or “Old Master” • Born c. 604 bc • Author of Tao te Ching or Taodejing: The Way and Its Power • Legendary life

  40. TAOISM • Tao: the ultimate reality behind existence, a transcendant essence. • Highly individualistic and mystical character • Existential skepticism • Wu-wei: spontaneity -- to discern and follow the natural forces -- to follow and shape the natural flow of events, not to struggle against nature

  41. Yin and Yang • Negative and positive principles of the universe. • One cannot exist without the other, and they often represent opposites in relations to each other. • As there is more and more Yang, eventually, Yin will appear and replace this increase. Similarly in the opposite direction, Yang will appear to replace the increase in Yin

  42. Negative Female Dark Evil Earth Positive Male Light Good Heaven YIN YANG

  43. Three Jewels • Compassion - leads to courage • Moderation - leads to generosity • Humility - leads to leadership

  44. ANCIENT CHINA Earliest Dynasties Xia Dynasty 21st-16th c. bce Shang Dynasty 16th-11th c. bcefirst writing Zhou Dynasty1027 bc-221 bc Confucianism Taoism

  45. CLASSICALCHINA • Dynasties Qin (Chin) Dynasty 221 bc-206 bc origin of name of China • The Han Empire • 206 bce-220 ce

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