Tuesday, June 12, 2012

June 12, 2012

Confucius
Confucius was a a Chinese philospher, thinker, and scholar.
Lived about 551 BCE- 479 BCE, Not successful
Was not a religon more on a philosophy of life.
He wanted everyone to respect eachother.
He supported a powerful leader, but wanted to limit the power.
After Confucius died, his ideas were popular.
His descendents were honoured.

Paper and Printing
An important invention of the chinese.
They used old rags, hemp, tree bark could be able to make cheaper paper.
Starch was added to make the paper stronger, and  gelatin, made from lichens, formed a coating for the paper.
For printing the used pear or jujube wood, cut the wood the size of two book pages.
Covered them in paste, then the information to be printed was written on a thin sheet of paper the same size.

Porcelain
Chinese porcelain is white, delicate, and translucent, valued in medieval europe.
Porcelain is now made into expensive dishes called china.

Gunpowder and Fireworks
Was invented about the same time as woodblock printing.
They used gunpowder for entertainment.
At first, used to make firework displays.

Footbinding
Footbinding for women is one Chinese custom that other countries did not imitate.
The binding caused the feet to become crescent-shaped or lotus-shape. Tiny, bound feet were considered a sign of female beauty and reminded women that they were not free.
Once binded the feet can never go back to the normal shape.

Mnc.

Monday, June 11, 2012

June 11

China notes:
Food:
-basic food was millet, barley, wheat, beans, vegetables, fish, and hunted animals such as bears.
-ate 24 different kinds fish
-onions, garlic, dogs, pigs, goats, sheep, water buffalo, chickens.
-in times of famine even ate insects.
-ate food with chopsticks
-tea was a commonly consumed drink, became a valuable trading product.


What they wore:
-plants, animals, and silkworms supplied the flexible fibers needed to make soft wearable fabric.
-silk production became an important art and industry.
-men wore long, belted tunics with a jacket over top. This style was the same for men in different classes. The type of fabric and amount of decoration indicated the social rank of the wearer.
-Women wore plain jackets and belted skirts over simple tunic dresses.
-silk was expensive to produce and a long time to make and was considered precious, it was reserved for nobility.
-Peasant's clothing was similar in style but was made with rough fibers from plants, like hemp or banana leaf.
-wool was used as padding in outerwear and was woven into thick fabrics.
-Men wore simple hats or kerchiefs on their heads until elaborate hairstyles became popular.
-Men often wore hair in a heavy roll, with a short pig tail hanging down the back.
-Woman held their hair in place with pins made from jade, bone, and ivory.
-Women also wore necklaces and pendants made from jade and bone, often shaped like birds, tigers or elephants.

Housing:
-Capital of the Shang Dynasty was Anyang.
-Anyang covered a large area along a bend of the Hung Ho River.
-River offered some protection from invasions.
-Packed earth was used for foundations of the buildings.
-On top of the foundation were wooden pillars, used to support the walls.
-Walls were made of twigs, plastered with clay. Roofs probably thatched.
-Most buildings were built around a central courtyard.
-Most merchants and crafts people lived on the outside of the capital city, in mud huts.
-In winter, farmers lived in small villages near the city.
-Farmers homes were simple one-room huts with dirt floors, mud walls, and thatched roofs.
-In summer the farmers moved to their fields, where they lived in bamboo huts.

 Technology:
-Used the potters wheel to make high-quality pottery.
-Artisans made elaborate chariot decorations and a variety of bronze weapons, spears, knives, and axes.
-Other crafts people were equally skilled at working with jade, wood, and bone and made usefull tools for farmers and builders.
-They had cart wheels, wheelbarrows, paddle wheel boats, and sledges for transporting heavy building materials.
-Farmers had digging forks, flails, hoes, ploughs, sickles, and querns. 
-Metal workers also used anvils.
-The windlass was used for lifting heavy objects.

Religious and Spiritual beliefs:
-Most people believed in the spirit world.
-Most important god was Tien, the god of heaven.
-People practiced ancestor worship
-They believed in Filial piety, younger family members were respectful of elders and the community.
-Common people did not share the religion of the nobility.
-They worshiped various gods, whom they believed controlled the earth and crops.
-People consulted sorcerers. (aka Wu)
-Wu could work magic on nature, and provided spells to protect someone from evil spirits  and could also help provide friendly spirits.


The Burial of a King:
- When a ruler died, a great pit was dug and ramps led down into the pit.
-He was accompanied by weapons, ornaments, bronze ceremonial vessels, horses, chariots and dogs.
-servants were also sacrificed and buried with their leader so they could continue to serve him in the afterlife.


The Military:
-Nobles were the warriors and lead the armies.
-Armed with bronze axes and daggers, they rode into battle in chariots with spoked wheels.
-Foot soldiers fought at close range using spears and knives.
-China had a history of women warriors.
-Lady Hao, was the third wife of the last Shang ruler, waged several military campains.


The fall of the Shang Dynasty:
-The Shang Dynasty ruled for more than five centuries.
-The last ruler had a beautiful partner, named Ta Chi.
-Ta Chi was known for the torture she inflicted on anyone who did not show her proper respect.
-Under the cruel reign of the king and Ta Chi, people revolted.
-A group from the west called the Zhou led the up rise against the Shang.
-The last Shang king set fire to his palace and then committed suicide.

The First Emperor of China:
-of the 300 emperors of china, Qin Shi Huang Di had the greatest and long lasting effect on China.
-His Dynasty ruled from 221 BCE to 206 BCE.
-He became king when he was 13 years old.
-By age 38, he had united a number of states in the area and declared himself the first emperor of a united china.
-He set standards for writing,weights and measures,money and the law, and all parts of the country adopted them.
-These changes improved communication and business within the country. 
-People traded with countries with countries such as Persia and India.
-Qin Shi Huang Di did not believe in the teachings of Confucius, he burned many books and he burned more that 400 people who believed in Confucianism.
-If a man disagreed with the emperor he was killed and so was his family.
-Qin Shi Huang had huge projects built during his reign, including the grand canal, the great wall and the Terra Cotta warriors of Xi'an.

The Grand Canal: 
-The grand canal is the worlds longest and oldest human made canal system.
-It is 1795 kilometers long and has 24 locks and 60 bridges.
-Construction started in the 5th century CE and finished in 610 CE during the Sui Dynasty.
-The canal runs from Hangzhou, southwest of Shanghai, north to Tianjin and then to Beijing.
 -The canal is still used to transport goods to and from markets.

KW

Friday, June 8, 2012

Hierarchy of Society
King
Nobles
Commoners (merchants, craftspeople)
Farmers(peasants, labourers)
Slaves

The king was the head of all society, who was also the religious leader.
The nobles were the warrior leaders, below the king.
Below the nobles were craftspeople and merchants.
Farmers made the lower class.
Slaves were below the farmers.

Craftspeople were skilled at making weapons, tools, jewellery, and pottery. Weavers made fine silk cloth that nobles made into lavish garments. Cowrie shells to pay. Metal coins invented in 5th century.

Farmers were the largest number of people. Grew food, respected, often badly treated. Rented their land. Were soliders in times of war, construction at times of peace.

Laborers- probably slaves. Used as sacrifices. Worked on kings buildings.

P.S
Slaves- owned by noblemen and kings.

Tuesday, June 5, 2012

Ancient China- June 5th

Inventions- Wheel barrow, paddle wheel boat, gun powder, paper, woodblock writing, great wall- can see from space
Dynasties- Shang
Rivers- two major rivers, yellow river (haung ho river) and long river. The yellow river was terrible floods, dikes, dams, canals, irrigation systems
Important because- transportation, water for washing, and drinking, irrigation of crops
Neolithic farmers grew millet and rice
Unpredicted summer rains
Discovering the Shang Dynasty- c.1766 BCE- 1027 BCE
Dragon bones discovered actually dinosaur bones
Excavations proved the Shang Dynasty actually existed
Development of writing- Shang Dynasty in China to communticate in writing- 45 hundred characters.
Pictograghs- Pictorial symbol or sign that represents a word or a group of words.
Hierarchy or society-
King- "Mandate of heaven" Sun and Moon gods- guide diecisions- powerful- responcible- made decisions with oracle bone
Nobles, Commoners (merchants, craftspeople) , farmers (peasants, labourers), Slaves.

M. M