Ancient China

By Brendan R
  • Period: 3003 BCE to 1400 BCE

    Ancient China

  • 2750 BCE

    Tea

    Tea
    For several thousand years, tea—made by letting tea leaves steep in boiling water—was drunk mostly as medicine. Tea houses had sprung up throughout the country. The drink’s popularity made tea-plant cultivation a major industry, often involving
    an entire community.
  • 300 BCE

    Compass

    Compass
    Chinese compasses were made with a magnetic mineral called lodestone.Lodestone is influenced by Earth’s magnetic poles. If you put a piece of lodestone on wood and float it in a bowl of water, the lodestone will turn until it points in a north-south direction.
  • 150

    Paper

    Paper
    Papermaking became an important business in China. For more than 500 years, the Chinese were the only people in
    the world who knew how to make paper. From China, knowledge of papermaking traveled to Japan and across Central Asia.The Europeans probably first learned about this art after 1100. Considering how important it is for
    recording and transmitting information,few inventions touch our lives more than paper.
  • 450

    Paddle Wheel

    Paddle Wheel
    The Chinese made this by arranging a series of paddles in a wheel. People walked on a treadmill to turn the paddle wheel, which moved through the water, pushing the boat forward.
  • Jan 1, 618

    Segmental Arched Bridge

    Segmental Arched Bridge
    The new Chinese bridge used arches that were a smaller part, or segment, of a circle. This made the bridges broader and flatter than
    semicircular arches could. Called a segmental arch bridge,
    the new type of bridge took less material to build and was
    stronger, as well.
  • Jan 2, 650

    Printing

    Printing
    The invention of paper made another key
    development possible: printing. The printer first drew characters (symbols) on paper.Then glued the paper to a wooden block. When
    the glue was dry, the printer carved out the wood around
    the characters, leaving the characters raised on the wood.
  • Feb 14, 850

    Gunpowder

    Gunpowder
    Chinese alchemist looking for the secret to eternal life accidentally discovered gunpowder when working with salt peter. Military Technology.
  • Jan 1, 950

    The Flamethrower

    The Flamethrower
    By the 10th century, the Chinese had made the first weapon that used gunpowder which was the flamethrower. Flamethrowers contained gunpowder mixed with oil. The Chinese used them to spray enemies with a stream of fire.
  • Jan 1, 1300

    Rocket Technology

    Rocket Technology
    Rocket technology was developed during the Song dynasty. Rockets were powered by black powder made of saltpeter, charcoal, and sulfur. Later, the Chinese used them as weapons. They even developed a two-stage rocket for their armies. The first stage propelled the rocket through the air. The second stage dropped arrows down on the enemy.