Chinese Inventions By Scott Strait and Thomas Trytek

The Four Great Inventions. Gunpowder, Paper, Printing and the Compass are sometimes called the Four Great inventions of ancient China because they are very important inventions in China and around the world.

SILK Silk and silk fabric emerged in China at least 5,500 years ago. Chinese silk was highly prized among the wealthy of the ancient roman empire. The Ancient Chinese made silk from silkworms cocoons. The cocoons are placed in warm water unraveled and spun or woven into silk.

Gun Powder Gunpowder was invented in China probably during the 1000’s. They use gunpowder for canons and also to make Fireworks. Fireworks are used for special occasions. The earliest known compass dates from China during Han Dynasty (2 nd century BC-2 nd century AD).

The Kite The kite was invented roughly 2,500 to 3,000 years ago. Children around the world still use it for fun today.

Paper Almost 5,000 years ago, the papyrus plant was processed and used as paper. It was made by a plant called the papyrus for paper.

Resources Ms. Frizzles Adventures China Activity Book Ducksters Web Site Enchanted Learning.com