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Chinese Inventions

  • Tea
    2700 BCE

    Tea

    For several thousand years, tea was made by letting leaves steep in boiling water. This Chinese invention was mostly drunk for medicine, but was also created as a plant.
  • Period: 300 BCE to 1400

    Chinese History

  • Steel
    200 BCE

    Steel

    The Chinese first made steel, a very useful metal, and is made from iron, but can shift into different things easier.
  • Porcelain
    50

    Porcelain

    Another Chinese invention from the 1st century is a type of fine pottery called porcelain.
  • Printing Press
    650

    Printing Press

    The invention of paper made the key event of printing possible. The Chinese use a technique called woodblock printing which was then covered with ink to be glued.
  • Gunpowder
    850

    Gunpowder

    Gunpowder was accidentally invented by alchemist who were trying to fine the secret of eternal life.
  • Magnetic Compass
    950

    Magnetic Compass

    The Chinese were using compasses to help them navigate on long voyages. This invention had a major impact on China's exploration industry and is used almost everywhere today.
  • Paper
    960

    Paper

    The Chinese invented the art of papermaking which was made from hemp and the bark of mulberry.
  • Movable Type
    1050

    Movable Type

    Movable type consists of separate blocks for each character. Printers made their type by carving characters out of clay and baking them. Eventually, all newspapers, books, and magazines were printed using a movable type.
  • Rocket Technology
    1300

    Rocket Technology

    Rocket technology was developed in China during the Song dynasty. The Chinese mostly used this invention for fireworks, but later used them as weapons.