Early Chinese Art 中国 艺术品 汤姆
Shang 商朝 c BC–c BC Valued bronze as the highest of all metals Had a system of writing (oracle script) utilizing carving of letters into various things: bronze, jade, pottery, bone Used bronze for war, religion, and decoration Created first chariots Early martial arts developed Advances in astronomy Created musical instruments
Houmuwu ding, 后母戊鼎 The largest work of bronze of all ancient times Religious purpose Used for ritual human sacrifice (Hòumǔwù), means Queen Mother Wu, Likely the dedicatee It is 133 centimeters high, 110 centimeters wide, and 79 centimeters deep and weighs kilograms Each side has a blank space in the middle, surrounded by a band of decoration featuring taotie (animal faced creatures) and kuilong (one-legged dragons). Two handles each decorated with two tigers facing each other, their jaws closing around a human head in between them
Shang art
Zhou 周朝 B.C. Bronze lost religious value only symbol of power now Clay became more commonplace Mandate of heaven created Intellectual boom with philosophy i.e. Xun Zi Hydraulic engineering and irrigation projects were started
Bi with dragons A bi is a flat jade disc with a circular hole in the middle Unknown use in neolithic times Often made from jade or pottery Signified moral quality Often times found in burial sites
Zhou art
Qin 秦 221 BC–206 BC The first true unification of China happened Qin Shi Huang conquered the 5 kingdoms Was a period of fighting Many advances in warfare The beginning of construction of the great wall Sadly many books and scrolls were burned due to their views Art and architecture was based around conflict death and war
Terracotta Army The main room’s contents are unknown due to the mercury level More than 8,000 soldiers, 130 chariots with 520 horses and 150 cavalry horses Non-military figures were found in other pits, including officials, acrobats, strongmen and musicians. Buried near mount Li due to the precious metals found there Most likely they were created in assembly line style Originally painted and armed
Qin art of war
Han Dynasty 汉朝 / 漢朝 221 B.C. to 206 A.D. Economic growth Scientific breakthroughs like paper and paper money Silks became a staple for the wealthy Legal systems came into place Creation of belief in yin and yang Establishment of silk road Emphasis on funerary art Much of the art was focused on animals Built upon The Great Wall
Han art
Philosophy Confucianism founded by Confucius: Taoism founded by Laozi: Mohism founded by Mozi: Legalism founded by Shang Yang and Han Fei:
Caligraphy Considered the highest of chinese arts by citizens Many forms and interpetations Many variations due to the numerous dialects
The great wall Not visible from space Filled with corpses of workers 21,196 km Started in Qin dynasty reached the state it is now after the Ming dynasty Made of bricks stone and stamped earth To protect against invaders Numerous watchtowers