Shang Dynasty Research Paper

ruled with autocracy which is where the government has unlimited power and runs their dynasty similar to a tyrant. When Shi Huangdi built the Great Wall of China, he forced laborers to work on the wall or die. The Qin dynasty was not afraid of cruelty and Confucian scholars were given no mercy. Because the Qin were legalists, any citizen who broke the law was executed. The emperor was hated for burning books and for forcing citizens to work on the wall. Shi Huangdi helped China centralize which unified them at the cost of human freedom.

Writing System: The Shang set up the first Chinese writing system that while originally depicted pictures of objects, became simplified over time with each character representing a one-syllable word for an object or ideas. The several hundred written symbols were used to write messages on oracle bones and lay the foundation for China’s modern writing system.

- Notice that completely whole terracotta army was armed with bronze weapons. There were about 10000 copies of various weapons. The main mystery is that this weapon is still sharp and shiny even after 2000 years. Accordingly, metallurgy and weapons production of that time were at a very high level. But how it was possible to produce a coating of such durability. Although today there is an answer - use chrome coating. The only thing is that chrome plating method was developed in Germany in 1920, so how it could be used in ancient China?

The Shang made pottery and silk cloth. The pottery was made intricately and delicately with either porcelain or bronze. They also made silk cloth, which was made out of silk worms. Another invention that they made was the pictographs. It is pictures that looked like words that we use now. The Shang dynasty lasted 600 years which is quite long compared to the Qin dynasty which only lasted 19 years. They also used oracle bones. The oracle bones are made of animal shells or bones, then you inscribe words on it. After that you burn it, depending what shape it ends up, it decides your fate. The Shang dynasty was a united nation, unlike the Zhou they did not have any states. Their capital was Anyang which is in the Hennan province. They believed that if they sacrificed humans it would make the gods happy, and good things will happen. The Shang majorly improved the Art and Literature of China.

The Gupta Empire has many achievements, and their greatest achievement was metalwork. During the Gupta Empire period 240 to 550 CE, metals, iron, copper, gold, and silver played a vital role in boosting the poor economic condition of the region. Items made from silver could only be afforded by the rich. Some of the most famous items made by the metal workers were the coins. The Gupta rulers were engraved into the gold and silver coins. The coins were used as a money system. They did not just make coins; they also made monuments, weapons, and everyday objects, like silverware, vases, etc. Gupta Empire metal workers were also very good with iron. They made an iron pillar that was 7.21 meters tall. The pillar is located in a place called Mehrauli. After being in the rain, sun, and snow for 1600 years, the pillar surprisingly has no rust on it. No one knows how the metalworkers acquired their advanced skills. Just because there are other achievements of the Gupta Empire does not mean this one is not important. Metalwork is what they're famous for, and it is a spectacular achievement. Gupta metalwork is a work of art and should never be forgotten.

Secondly, the Shang political system was prearranged into a hierarchy system, meaning that it had many levels of jobs and social class. The invention of writing had a profound effect on the Shang government and its capability to rule. It amplified the government’s ability to organize on a substantial level, whether it be organizing the mining of large quantities of bronze, construct city walls, or to wage large military campaigns.

wampum : Wampam was symbolic “words” of condolence. When Hiawatha 's seven daughters were killed by an evil sorcerer, the wampum given by Deganawidah (the Peacemaker) restored his emotional balance. They took the wampum to the five Iroquois nations as a message of peace. This became the Iroquois Confederacy. (pg 3)

Wu Zhao was the first ever female to become an Emperor in ancient china. She was born on the 17th of February 624 AD and grew up in a very wealthy family and being well educated by her father. By the time she was 14 she moved into a imperial palace to help serve emperor Taizong as a concubine. Wu Zhao continued to be educated while living at the imperial palace, learning languages and English, which certainly gave her the background knowledge and skills to be a good Emperor. While some believe she manipulated her way to power, Wu Zhao was a good leader for all people in ancient china as she set a positive example for others, particularly women, and introduced many improvements which made the lives of those under her leadership better.

Speaking of his tomb, Qin Shihuangdi was obsessive. Qin was obsessed with the concept of his death. With this, he had anyone who revealed his whereabouts put to death with their entire family. He also, constantly

After 600 CE there were many different adaptions of trade. First there is the the Silk road, maritime networks of the Indian Ocean, as well as the straights of Malacca and Sunda straights. The Silk Road was the general term for a web of overland routes. These roads were not the same as the type of roads one would think of when thinking of Roman roads. These roads that were comprised within the Silk Road were in fact worn paths. The path a traveler and their goods took on the Silk road depended on where they came from and where they were going mainly, as it was not common until after about 1,200 CE for one to travel the full length of the Silk Road. Typically, goods that moved east moved the full length of the Silk Road. These goods came

China’s Last Empire. The Great Qing. William T. Rowe. The Belknap Press of Harvard University Press, 2009. 360 pages including Emperors and Dynasties, Pronunciation Guide, Notes, Bibliography, Acknowledgements, Index, Maps and Figures.

Shang in the heyday of slavery, slave-owning aristocracy of the ruling class, forming a huge bureaucracy and the military institution. Oracle and inscriptions record the text symbols has found the earliest Chinese into the system. Also developed a parallel existence in the business of the Yangtze River basin during non-Chinese Civilization.

During the Shang Dynasty, the king and the elites lived very comfortable lives. To become part of the highest group in their social hierarchy, you had to be related to the king or your family had to be one of a high ranking. At the bare minimum to be verified as a superior in their culture it was necessary to have “control of superior armaments like bronze dagger-axes and horse-and-chariot teams” (De Bary and Bloom, 16). More importantly, “the elites’ legitimacy derived from their ability - through divination - to define, explain and control reality, a reality that, in a Bronze Age theocracy, was primarily conceived in a religious and familial terms” (De Bary and Bloom, 16). Once considered a superior in their society, one was able to conduct sacrifices and other religious practices. The king was one of the leaders of religion and seen as a person who was in between the gods and humans. He had servants who lived with him alongside his extended family. The aristocrats and the king were the only people able to have extended family living with them because they had the money to support all of them, while the rest

The Hsia Dynasty considered the first dynasty in China. However this dynasty is legendary because there is little archeological evidence to support existence. It is dated from 2205 BCE to 1760 BCE. According to the legend Yu was the wise king who invented a way to control flooding of the Huang He River so that people could live there. Since there is very little evidence to support the story, the second dynasty, called the Shang Dynasty, is the first one recorded

China is a country in East Asia, and its culture is still considered the oldest still performed culture in the world. The name China comes from the Sanskrit way of saying it which was Cina which translated to Cin by Persians and the name seemed to have become known through the route along the Silk Road that came from China to the rest of the world. The Romans and Greeks knew China as Seres because that means "the land where silk comes from". The name China did not appear in print around west until around1516 CE in Barbosa's journals when he was narrating his travels in the east. In Ancient China the main job for peasants was as a farmer. Being a farmer was a very hard job. They worked twenty four hours a day, but they land they worked on and