Time Period Dynasty Quick Glimpse

Early Xia (Hsia) Lungshan people, the great engineers

10,000-1500 Silk, potters wheel, baked brick houses, flood control,
BCE irrigation

Bronze Age Shang

1500-600 Rich Nobles & Poor Farmers
BCE Chou (Zhou) Mandate of Heaven (Chou)
Chariots, bowmen, great royal hunts, bronze candlesticks,
feudal lords, jade carvings, Chinese writing
(pictographs), calligraphy

Classical Age Late Chou Confucius & Taoism (Chou)

600 BCE- Silk Road (Han)
200 CE Ch'in (Qin) Central government, public
schools, mirrors, oil lamps,
Han
Building the Great fancy shoes, fireplaces, window
Wall frames with colored glass, marble
First Emperor (Qin) staircases
Chinese New Year & Lantern
Festival
Chinese Zodiac

Age of A bunch of Hu the Tiger

Division dynasties Invention of gunpowder.
200-600 CE Tea! (Confucius probably never tasted tea, and it really didn't
become popular until T'ang times, but this era is when it first
started to be enjoyed.)
Early T'ang The Golden Age!
Medieval Furniture, ceramics, spoons, amber, turquoise, gold, silver,
Period goblets, teacups, sports, games, music, dancing, even a kind of
600-900 CE football, and a neat form of air-conditioning. Fancy hats, silk
robes, jade belts, Buddhism

Tea was used as barter with areas in Mongolia for horses in

an exchange called the "Tea and Horse" Policy.
 Story: Wang the Peddler

This story tells us quite a lot about daily life in Han times, in both the city and in the country.
We found 13 things about life in Han times. How about you?

Ancient Story: Once upon a time, a simple man named Wang lived in a village in long ago early
Han times. Only a narrow, rough path led to this village, so merchants, officials, and travelers
rarely visited. To sell his charcoal, Wang knew he must become the traveler, and make the
journey to the city.

Wang shouldered his long carrying pole. At each end, swung wide bamboo baskets stacked high
with charcoal.

"What present would you like me to bring you," he asked his young wife.

"A comb!" she cried. "A beautiful comb like those of the imperial court!" The combs they used
in the country at that time were made of wood. "A comb like that!" she cried, pointing to the
crescent of the golden moon.

After a long trip, Wang arrived safely at the city gates. He sold his charcoal for a good price.
Made bold by the string of cash he now carried, he looked around the city for his wife's present.
The city was so very pretty, with banners of red and yellow and green and blue hung from shop
fronts and balconies. It was very noisy with the racket of shop men and shouting buyers.

Wang rubbed his chin. What was it his wife had wanted? He had forgotten! Perhaps a pair of
leather slippers? Or a warm fur coat? It was getting dark. The shops would soon be closed. Early
in the morning, he had to return to the village. Suddenly, he noticed the moon. It was round, so
very round. She wanted something round, he thought. He looked in shop after shop for
something to make his young wife happy.

Suddenly, he spotted the perfect gift. He wrapped his purchase in a piece of cotton cloth and
hurried off, with only one bow to the shopkeeper. Wang had bought a mirror. He did not even
know what a mirror was. He only knew that it was round.
 Wang the Peddler
Story Answers
Ancient China for Kids
The story of Wang the Peddler tells us quite a lot about daily life in Han times, in both the city
and in the country.

Here is what we found about daily life in the story of Wang the Peddler:

1. long carrying pole

2. bamboo baskets swinging at both ends

3. charcoal

4. wooden comb

5. copying imperial fashion (by wanting an imperial style comb)

6. city gates

7. string of cash

8. decorated city, with banners

9. balconies

10. leather slippers

11. fur coat to purchase

12. only one bow. Did good manners dictate more? Probably.

13. mirror - unknown in the remote areas of the countryside, but possibly new to this time

Do you think Wang's young wife liked her present? We do! We think she'll be the envy of the
village. Wang had never seen a mirror. Most probably, his wife and all the villagers had never
seen one either!
 The Silk Road
Ancient China for Kids
Silk is a strong fiber that silkworms produce to make their
cocoons. It can be collected and woven into a soft fabric we call
silk. Silk fabric is a very old discovery. It was invented in
ancient China.
Legend says: Once upon a time, a long time ago in ancient
China, there lived an emperor and his wife. The emperor built
his wife a most beautiful garden. She spent much of her time
there, sewing and chatting with her ladies in waiting. One day,
while she was in her garden, a cocoon fell into her tea. She was
just about to fling the tea away when she noticed something
amazing. The cocoon was unraveling! It appeared to be a
thread. She carefully fished it out of her teacup and called for
her imperial seamstress. Together, they discovered that the
thread from a silkworm cocoon could be woven into soft, strong
fabric. It took time to collect enough thread to make a jacket. It
was a beautiful jacket. Everyone wanted silk to wear. But it took
time for silkworms to spin their silky thread. To save the
silkworms from too many people wanting their silk, the
emperor's wife asked to the emperor to tell the people that silk
fabric could only be worn by the royal family. She was not
being greedy. She was being protective of the silkworms and
their fabulous thread.
No one knows if the legend is true, but it is true that only the
royal family could wear silk clothes for a very long time. But
after a while, silk farms were started in ancient China. Mulberry
trees were silkworms favorite food, so mulberry tree farms
appeared all over ancient China. Once that happened, the nobles
began wearing silk. Still, merchants and peasants were not
allowed to wear silk. During some dynasties in ancient China,
silk was even used as a form of money. Silk was used to make
beautiful clothing. But it was also used to make silk canvas for
painting and strong fishing line. It was even used to make the
most expensive and sought after paper.
Silk became a valuable export for trade. Nobles and kings and
princes and queens all wanted silk. They were willing to pay a
very high price to get it. The ancient Chinese did their best to
keep silk production a secret. It remained a secret for many
years.
One day, the ancient Romans were introduced to ancient
Chinese silk through a trader. This trader had heard of the silk
people. But he did not know where they lived. The silk he traded
had been passed from hand to hand and finally found its way to
ancient Rome. Many Roman explorers began searching for the
silk people. They never did find them. But they did find The Silk
Road. Trading silk along the Silk Road was very (very!)
dangerous. But the demand was high, and the profit even higher.
So, what was the Silk Road?
 The Silk Road
Ancient China for Kids
The Silk Road began during the Han Dynasty in the Golden Age of China. It was not actually a
road. It was not paved. It was not even a single route. The Silk Road was a nickname given to
any route that led across China to Rome. It was a 4000-mile trip. At one end was China. At the
other end was Rome. Each had something the other wanted. Rome had gold and silver and
precious gems. China had silk, tea, and spices. The Silk Road was important because not only
goods were traded, ideas and culture were carried by the traders.

The Romans were not surprised to find another civilization hidden over the mountains. They had
been looking for “the Silk People” for a long time. They discovered pieces of silk from the
people they conquered. Silk quickly became popular in Rome. But the Romans did not know
who was making this wonderful material. The people they conquered did not know who was
making silk either. They simply traded for it. The Romans sent out people to find the makers.
Most never returned. When the Eagle (sign of Rome) finally met the Dragon (sign of China), you
can imagine how excited they were.

The rewards were great, but the dangers were many. It was incredibly dangerous to travel along
the Silk Road. You faced desolate white-hot sand dunes in the desert, forbidding mountains,
brutal winds, and poisonous snakes. There was one nice section, called the Gansu Corridor, a
relatively fertile strip that ran along the base of one of the mountains. But, to reach this strip, you
had to cross the desert or the mountains. And of course there were always bandits and pirates.
Very few traders made the whole trip. They worked in relays. Each trader would go a certain
distance, exchange their goods for other goods, and hopefully return. The next would move
along the road, trade, and hopefully return.

Over time, trading posts were established along the routes to make trading a little easier. Over
the centuries, cities replaced some of the trading posts. But it was always dangerous to travel the
Silk Road. The geography was daunting, and bandits were plentiful.

There were three main routes:

 Northern Route – Westward to Black Sea

 Central Route – Westward to Persia, Mediterranean Sea, Rome

 Southern Route – Westward to Iran, India

 The Silk Road Game
THE SILK ROAD GAME
First, read The Silk Road
Then, divide your class into five groups. (Select two students to
monitor trades.)
 Group 1 (One): Gold 5, Food 10
 Group 2 (Two):Silver 7, Food 3
 Group 3 (Three): Food 10
 Group 4 (Four): Spices 7, Food 3
 Group 5 (Five): Silk 5, Food 10
The goal is for each group to end up with 1 gold, 1 (or more)
silver, 1 (or more) spices, 1 silk.
Assign groups a position in a straight line. Group 1 is Rome.
Group 5 is China. Groups 2, 3, and 4 are trading posts along the
Silk Road.
Have each group create their own “goods”. Distribute pieces of
cardboard or heavy paper. Keep the size relatively small but
large enough to trade easily. Prior to the start of the game, check
to make sure all goods have been created in the right quantity
and category.
The Rules:
Each group can only trade with the group next to it. Example:
Group 1 can only trade with Group 2. Group 2 can only trade
with either Group 1 or Group 3.
Each turn, every group must throw away 1 food. (Food markers
collected by the trade monitors.) If any group runs out of food,
they starve, and the game ends.
Items can only pass via trade. They cannot be given as gifts.
1 turn: Each group can trade once each way if they can. Groups
1 & 5 can only trade once per turn as they only have one
direction to go. Groups 2, 3, and 4 can trade once with each side.
Every third turn, the teacher (Bandits) interrupts 1 trade so that
trade does not get done. Nothing is taken away from the two
groups involved, but no exchange of goods occurs.
For time estimation: This game takes no more than 7 turns
before a group dies or wins. If they think ahead, they should be
able to win.
Terracotta Warriors – activity
The Terracotta Army was discovered in 1974 by a farmer in Xi'an, Shaanxi province,
China. Dating from 210BC, there are now believed to be an unbelievable 8,000
soldiers, 130 chariots with 520 horses, and a further 150 cavalry horses - the
majority of which are still buried and unseen.
The figures include warriors, chariots, horses, officials, acrobats, strongmen, and
musicians, and are believed to have taken 700,000 workers over 30 years to build,
ready for the funeral of the First Qin Emperor, to fight for him in the afterlife!
Make Your Own Terracotta Army!
Use terracotta air hardening clay, or brown playdough to make your own Terracotta
Warriors. Use the photos below for inspiration.
 Terra Cotta Army
Ancient China for Kids
Can you imagine digging a well on your land one day, seeking a source of fresh water to
water your crops, and discovering instead a life-sized terracotta soldier made completely
out of clay? That’s what happened to a farmer in China in 1974! At first, the farmer and
the other men from his tiny village thought it was an old buried kiln they could use to
cook bricks. They were very careful as they tried to dig it out because they hoped the
villagers could use it.

The villagers realized they had found something amazing when they uncovered a life-
sized human face made of clay looking up at them. An archaeologist was called in to take
a look. More archaeologists descended upon the site. After relocating the villagers to new
homes nearby, the government of China set about uncovering these long buried artifacts.

By the time the archaeologists had finished digging, they had uncovered more than 8000
life-size terracotta soldiers! Some were kneeling with terracotta bows, ready to shoot.
Some were standing. Some had terracotta moustaches. Some had terracotta (clay) armor.
They also found 520 terracotta horses, 150 cavalry horses, 130 chariots along with terra
cotta weapons. All were life-sized. All were made of clay. Each statue was amazingly
detailed, and no two statues looked alike. It was mind boggling!

Archaeologists believe and historians agree that over 2000 years ago, in BC times in
ancient China, it took approximately 720,000 (unpaid) laborers over 30 years to create
this incredible grouping. King Qin took the throne in his own province when he was 13
years old. Soon after, he started workers building terra cotta warriors to be buried with
him for protection when he died. Over the years, Qin accomplished quite a bit. He
conquered the other six provinces of ancient China and pulled them together into one
country, the country of China. He made enemies doing that. He renamed himself First
Emperor Qin, and started building the Great Wall of China, which made him more
enemies. First Emperor Qin was a legalist. He was harsh and cruel and the people hated
him, but he got things done - some very good things and some very bad.

As time went on, Qin wanted more and more terra cotta warriors. He wanted an army
buried with him, an army that would last forever, to guard him for eternity. Around 210
BC, when First Emperor Qin died, his son took over as Emperor, and saw to his father's
burial. By that time, thousands of terra cotta warriors had been created.