Han Dynasty

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Quick ReviewWhat continent is

China located on?Name the two major

rivers.What isolated China

from the rest of the world?

What was the social order of the Shang?

Name 3 of the Shang’s advances.

Describe oracle bones.

What philosophy believed in going with the flow of nature, yin and yang, and the 3 jewels?

What philosophy believed in the law (fa), legitimacy (shi), and arts of the ruler (shu), and had harsh punishments?

What philosophy believed in the return to ethics by fathers and leaders acting as good role models?

What were the Terra Cotta Soldiers?

Who was Shi Huangdi?

What occurred under standardization?

What were the benefits of the Great Wall?

What were the costs of the Great Wall?

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This was not the Golden Age of China, but life was very good for many of the people because of the demand for Chinese silk and the creation of the major trade route, the Silk Road.

East meets West

The silk road connected the East to the West for the first time in history.This allowed people to trade items, learn

about different customs and cultures and be exposed to new ideas.

Traded items on

the Silk Road

Silk cloth, grain, porcelain, rhubarb, herbal medicines, herds of horses, camels, dates, raisins, jade, horses, metal works, glass, musical instruments, glassware, carpets, spices, dyed cloth, gold, ivory, spices, cotton cloth, pearls, precious stones, bolts of silk

The Silk Road

People who traveled the Silk Road were constantly exposed to new ideas, sights, sounds and tastes. Traveling along the Silk Road, meant encountering unexpected surprises, discoveries and new knowledge.

Buddhism in China

As trade flourished, different people came together, and their contact led to cultural exchange and diffusion. It was during this period in the 1st century A.D.that traders and Buddhist missionaries firstbrought Buddhism to China.

Han Tombs

Han writing tells us very little about their daily life. Han tombs, however, tell us quite a lot. TheHans buried clay models of their homes andbelongings, in their tombs. Models includeddetails like little clay furniture and little

bronze oil lamps.

Arts &

Science

New literature& musicSo much was lost

during the book burnings of the Qin. The Han people triedvery hard to replacethe literature that was lost during Qin times, especially the works of Confucius. They created new

works of literature and music.

ArtBeautiful murals were painted on the walls of palaces. Scroll painting began. Craftsmen made jade jewelry and carvings, gold ornaments and belt

hooks, delicate paintings with wire thin brush strokes.

Iron and Pottery

Iron was used for making plows andother cast iron objects. Glazed pottery was brightly painted with livelyhunting scenes mountains, trees, clouds, dragons, tigers, and bears.

Medicine

Their medicine was advanced. They invented acupuncture.

ScienceTheir science was also advanced. During Han times, these ancient people invented paper. They also invented an instrument that told them when an earthquake was happening called

the seismograph.

Public School

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One of the Han emperors agreed with Confucius that education was the key to good government.

He started a system of public schools, for boys only, taught by Confucian teachers.

Jobs

Jobs were givento educated people

andnobles.

People were paid for their work.

City Life

Only about 10% ofthe population lived in the cities. Cities were neatly laid out with main streets andalleyways. Each city was surrounded by a strong

wall, made of earth and stone.As cities are today, the ancient Han cities

were centers of government, education, and trade.

Entertainment

Most marketplaces, throughout the city, had free entertainment. Musicians played bells,

drums and string instruments, and jugglers and

acrobats performed and danced.

The Poor

The poor lived in houses packed together. They had very little food, and little to no sanitation. Many of the young males joined street gangs. Gangs wore distinctive clothes and armor, that identified their gang. Teen gangs roamed the cities, terrorizing people.

The RichThe rich rushed to imitate the imperial

palace. They built elaborate homes, decorated with drapery, and cashmere carpets. They furnished family tombs with stone lions. On the lions, and on other sculpture, they added inscriptions mentioning how much each item had cost!

Merchants & Craftsmen

As in Shang times, merchants were hardly recognized as men. Once the canals were built, some merchants and craftsmen became rich.

Life in the

CountryCountry folk were farmers. They lived in one or two story mud houses with tiled or thatched roofs. They had curtains on the windows. Barns and other buildings surrounded the house. Several families lived in one house to allow

them to work their fields together.

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They still did not own their farms, but farms were larger in size, because

families had learned to team up. This solved a major problem. Together, they were able to produce more food, some years, than they needed, which allowed them to trade food

for other items.