Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Name: Niña Rica B. Cabantac Yr. & Section: BSOA-4A Subject: Foreign Language
Name: Niña Rica B. Cabantac Yr. & Section: BSOA-4A Subject: Foreign Language
Assignment #1
Through this 5,000 years’ timeline of Chinese History, you will discover the rich culture and historical
milestones that China has. This country has a unique and rich history and people of China are very proud
of it. For much of the last century, China has earned a reputation of being a copycat with low-quality
knockoffs. “Made in China” was not something to be proud of. Throughout China’s 5,000 years of
history, they have been known for some very interesting “first” and some truly revolutionary inventions.
China has been the source of many innovations, scientific discoveries and inventions. This includes the
Four Great Inventions: Papermaking, The Compass, Gunpowder, and Printing (both woodblock and
movable type), but the list doesn’t stop there. Here are the list (including two from the medieval period)
most famous Chinese inventions: Alcohol, Mechanical Clock, Tea Production, Silk, Umbrella,
Acupuncture, Iron Smelting, Porcelain, Earthquake Detector, Rocket, Bronze, The Kite, The Seed Drill,
Row Crop Farming, Toothbrush, and Paper Money.
I chose Ancient Chinese Invention “The Kite” because I was interested in how it was invented and where
they used it in their time. Here in the Philippines, the kite was just a toy when we were kids or even
adults. A kite is an object, usually used as a toy, which is flown in the air. It usually made of wood for the
frame covered with plastic bag, paper or cloth and has a long string attached which you hold while the
kite is flying.
Kites were very important to the history of China. The country has always been regarded as the origin of
kite making and kite flying. The kite developed around 3,000 years ago by ancient Chinese. The earliest
kites were made of wood, called Muyuan (wooden kite). In early times kites were mainly used for
military purposes such as sending a message, measuring distances, testing the wind and signaling. Over
time kite flying developed into playthings and kite flying is now enjoyed worldwide. The kite is believed
to have originated in China. Since its invention, there have been many adaptations to the kite by various
cultures around the world. The kite you probably flew as a kid looks a bit different to the original
Chinese kites and even the kites of modern China. A Chinese kite in ancient times would have used
simple materials such as wood and cloth. They were often made to resemble the shapes of birds.
Kites were invented in the early Warring States Period by Mozi and Lu Ban, two philosophers who came
after the teachings of Confucius. The kites were exclusive to China for many years before the knowledge
of how to make and use them advanced. The period saw many attacks from foreign powers, as well as
civil unrest. Kites played a role in providing military intelligence for the Chinese forces. Ultimately, with
Ancient China, the kite was an important signaling tool, and it was even used as a diversionary tool.
From distress signals, to cautionary tools, kites became the first “long distance” communicators that
allowed the military to organize their troops from afar. It is even used for maritime purposes.
Here is the picture of my DIY Ancient Chinese Kite that I chose for my
replica or model.
List of the Most Ancient Chinese Inventions and History
1. Paper Making
Besides its use for writing and books, paper was used to
produce topographical and military maps from the Han dynasty onwards. Drawn to a reasonably
accurate scale, they included color-coding and symbols for local features and included specific areas of
enlarged scale. Other uses of paper included as packaging for delicate items such as medicine and as
wrapping paper, especially for parcels of tea.
Paper was widely used to make hats, stiffened it was used for armor, and thinned it could be used for
windows. There were paper screens, sheets, curtains, clothes, and, eventually, money.
The development of printing allowed Chinese officials to make important documents. It helped in
military terms and lots of others. Also during 930 to 940 the Chinese were depressed because of war
and poverty., so when they invented printing it made some of them happier because books could be
printed and read.
3. Gunpowder
Gunpowder was a Chinese invention that revolutionized warfare. The Chinese used explosives on a wide
scale beginning in the tenth and eleventh centuries. The cannons, flamethrowers, and grenades that
they used in battle were quickly adopted by European forces for battles on land and at sea.
4. Compass
Additionally, the Ancient Chinese used the compass for navigation – to find their way home when
traveling. The use of the compass for travel also gave the advantage of being able to travel no matter
the weather condition. If clouds or fog masked the sun or the stars, you could still travel because the
compass would point you in the right direction.
5. Alcohol
In ancient China, since alcohol was regarded as a sacred liquid only when people made sacrificial
offerings to Heaven and the Earth or ancestors was it used. During the Tang dynasty, liquor was popular
and was highly praised by many famous poets. It was served as a designated offering for the Royal
Ancestral Temple during the Yuan Dynasty. After alcohol became an ordinary drink, many customs
concerning alcohol formed and evolved which had and have various relationships with Chinese daily life.
6. Mechanical Clock
The mechanical clock was invented in China, in 976 A.D. during the
Song Dynasty. Chan Ssu-Hsun built a clock using mercury. It was the
first working mechanical clock. The importance of mechanical clocks is
that they were made for telling time more accurately than water or
sun clocks. Mechanical clocks not only made timekeeping much more
precise, which was important for scientific purposes, but also
introduced it to the masses when centrally located clock towers
equipped with bells loudly struck the hour.
7. Tea Production
Tea was originally consumed for its medicinal properties. Used as an herbal medicine the Chinese added
the leaves to their food to provide nutrients or as an antidote for poison. It is also known for its benefits
of aiding digestion, which is why Chinese prefer to drink tea after their meals and also aids in nervous
disorders. Another benefit of drinking tea is it helps to expunge nicotine from the bodies of smokers
faster.
8. Silk
Silk is a thin, but strong fiber that silkworms produce when they are making their cocoons. It can be
woven into a very soft and smooth fabric. Silk fabric was invented in Ancient China and played an
important role in their culture and economy for thousands of years. Silk cloth was extremely valuable in
Ancient China. Wearing silk was an important status symbol. At first, only members of the royal family
were allowed to wear silk. Later, silk clothing was restricted to only the noble class. Merchants and
peasants were not allowed to wear silk. Silk was even used as money during some Ancient Chinese
dynasties.
9. Umbrella
10. Acupuncture
The oldest Chinese medicine book “Neijing”, also known as “The Classic
of Internal Medicine of the Yellow Emperor”, shows that acupuncture
was widely used as a therapy in China much before the time it was
written. Besides, various kinds of acupuncture needles were discovered
in the tomb of Prince Liu Sheng who died around 200 B.C. This is a
further proof that acupuncture was already in use in China more than
two thousand years ago.
12. Porcelain
When the instrument sensed an incoming seismic wave, one of the balls would drop and the sound
would alert observers to the earthquake, giving a rough indication of the earthquake’s direction of
origin. The device is said to have been very accurate and could detect earthquakes from afar, and did
not rely on shaking or movement in the location where the instrument was positioned.
14. Rocket
China has always been hailed as the hometown of ancient rockets, which was made by ancient
scientists via applying the counterforce produced by ignited gunpowder.
An ancient rocket consisted of four parts: arrowhead, arrow barrel, arrow feather, and gunpowder tube.
The gunpowder tubes, which were mostly made from bamboo tubes or paperboard, were filled with
gunpowder, with one end closed and the other end open. A small hole was left for the blasting fuse.
When ignited, the gunpowder would burn inside the tube, producing a large amount of gas, which,
while shooting backwards at high speed, would produce enormous forward-propelling force. Despite the
fact that powder and rocket were first invented in China, the ancient rocketry failed to develop into
modern rocketry due to longtime neglect in science and technology. Consequently, powder and rocket
were only used in fireworks for centuries.
15. Bronze
Bronze is a combination of 10% tin and 90% copper. Bronze weapons are much stronger than stone
weapons. The discovery of bronze changed a great many things. For one thing, miners and craftsmen
were needed to mine tin and copper, and to make bronze weapons. That meant farmers had to learn
how to produce more food than they needed because not everyone was farming. That meant weavers
and potters were needed to clothe the miners and craftsmen, and to provide pottery containers to the
farmers to use to store food. Most people were still farmers, but labor was getting organized.
Mainly, they were used for military purposes. The first kites were what we today would call prototype
kites: they were made of light wood and cloth. They were designed to mimic a bird's natural flight. The
first Chinese kites were used for measuring distances, which was useful information for moving large
armies across difficult terrain. They were also used to calculate and record wind readings and provided a
unique form of communication similar to ship flags at sea.
The seed drill was invented in China in the 2nd century BCE and
introduced to Italy in the mid-16th century. First attributed to
Camillo Torello, it was patented by the Venetian Senate in 1566.
Multi-tube iron seed drills were invented by the Chinese in the
2nd century BCE. This multi-tube seed drill has been credited
with giving China an efficient food production system that
allowed it to support its large population for millennia.
The seed drill is a device that plants the seed into soil at a uniform depth and covers it. If without this
device farmer had to plant the seeds by hand, resulting in waste and uneven growth. According to
records, the Chinese using of seed drills can be dated back to the 2nd Century BC. The device made
farmers’ job easier and highly improved the agricultural output in China. The seed drill is a very popular
way to plant seeds, however, the original idea has been changed and fixed into a more productive seed
drill that can plant more than 50 ancients China’s achievements in agriculture and Irrigation displayed
the beginning of China ‘s inventions, that were created for the convenience of the people. This therefore
displayed the appropriateness of the seed drill and how the improvement of this farming technique also
provided a way to conserve seeds, as a higher percentage of crops could now develop, decreasing the
amount of resources being wasted.
Row planting is what the Chinese invented to make crops like rice
and wheat easier to harvest. Row planting is where seeds are
placed in rows so that there is a walk way through the crops
instead of having a bunched up set of crops that is hard to get into
without damaging any of the harvest. In ancient Chinese time harvesting was not done b machines like
we have today, they would pick the wheat for example by hand so row planting helped them a lot with
their farming industry. The Chinese also relied on faring for their agriculture and row planting made
their harvesting of crops easier and faster. It was also more effective because if the crops were bunched
up then you might not get to all the plants but with row planting you can get to every plant.
19. Toothbrush
For much of its history, China used gold, silver and silk for large sums, and bronze for everyday
transactions. The notion of using paper as money is almost as old as paper itself. The most famous
Chinese issuer of paper money was Kublai Khan, the Mongol who ruled the Chinese empire in the 13th
century. Kublai Khan established currency credibility by decreeing that his paper money must be
accepted by traders on pain of death. As further enforcement of his mandate, he confiscated all gold
and silver, even if it was brought in by foreign traders.