Ingenious Inventions of China

Paper is made by grinding plant material into a pulp, forming it into thin sheets, and drying it in a form. This process was invented in 105 AD, about 1900 years ago. Paper

Gunpowder and Fireworks Gunpowder was invented in China, probably during the 1000's. The Chinese used gunpowder to make fireworks and for signal flares. Soon after its invention, the Chinese used gunpowder for weapons, which they called fire arrows. Fire rockets were made by filling capped bamboo tubes with gunpowder and iron bits.

The Compass By the third century AD, Chinese scientists had learned about magnetism. For example, they knew that iron ore, called magnetite, tended to align itself in a North/South position. Scientists learned to "make magnets" by heating pieces of ore to red hot temperatures and then cooling the pieces in a North/South position. The magnet was then placed on a piece of reed and floated in a bowl of water marked with directional bearings.

The Wheelbarrow The Chinese wheelbarrow had a single wheel in the middle of the wheelbarrow. Farmers used the wheelbarrow to take produce to the market place. Builders used the wheelbarrow to carry heavy building supplies. Soldiers used the wheelbarrow to remove wounded people from the battlefield.

Kites can be traced to fifth/fourth Century BC. when two men made kites shaped like birds which could fly for up to three days. Kites were used in wartime as early as 1232 to send messages over Mongol lines by the Chinese. The strings were cut and the kites landed among the Chinese prisoners, inciting them to revolt and escape. Kites fitted with hooks and bait were used for fishing. Kites

An abacus is a row of beads on a metal rod that is used for calculations. This was invented by the Chinese sometime in the second century B.C. Many Chinese are so skilled that they can figure out a difficult math problem on an abacus faster than a person using a calculator! The Abacus

Porcelain is made from coal dust and a type of fine, white clay to make fine china. It is baked at an extremely high temperature. Porcelain is usually white or cream colored. Artists started using paints in the thirteenth century. A color of blue from the mineral called cobalt was very popular all over the world! Chinaware was one of the first crafts in China. Pottery was made first for everyday use, but more delicate ware was eventually made. The porcelain finally became known as China. Porcelain

Playing cards were probably invented in China. On New Year's Eve, 969, the Emperor Mu-tsung is reported to have played "domino cards" with his wife. Unlike the Western versions of dominos, Chinese dominos were played much like cards. Chinese "money cards" bear an even closer resemblance to Western playing-cards. They had four suits, but the pictures on them were much different than the ones we use now. Even today some of the packs used in China have suits of coins and strings of coins - which Mah Jong players know as circles and bamboos. Playing Cards

Silk was first made by the Chinese about 4,000 years ago. Silk thread is made from the cocoon of a small moth whose caterpillar eats the leaves of the mulberry tree. The white cocoon is dropped into boiling water, and silk thread is unwound. According to Chinese legend, the first silk thread was made when a Chinese Empress was sitting under a mulberry tree, and a cocoon fell into her tea. She noticed the strong, silky threads of the cocoon uncoiling. She then experimented with silkworms and developed the use of silk in weaving around 2400 B.C. Silk

UMBRELLA Umbrellas were invented by the Chinese. The umbrellas were made from oiled paper because oil repels water. The frames of the umbrellas were made from mulberry bark or bamboo. Red and yellow umbrellas were used by royalty, and blue umbrellas were used by the common people. The Chinese also used umbrellas to keep the sun off their skin.

Many things in our everyday life were invented in China, including: The Wheelbarrow Silk The Abacus Paper Kites Porcelain The Compass Gunpowder & Fireworks The Umbrella Playing Cards