Let's Explore the Ancient Chinese, Part 2

Hello, my name is Kylie, and welcome to Ancient History, the Ancient Chinese, Part 2. In this video, you'll learn all about ancient Chinese arts and religions. Let's get ready to learn and appreciate ancient Chinese cultures. One of the many interesting components or parts of ancient Chinese culture is its art and religion. Each Chinese dynasty had its own unique take on art and religion. The term dynasty is used to refer to a period in Chinese history ruled by a specific set of emperors. If you'd like to learn more about the first three ancient Chinese dynasties, watch Ancient History, the Ancient Chinese, Part 1. The information we know from the time of the Qiya dynasty comes from ancient stories and the ruins of their village. So far, archaeologists have found no written records from the Qiya people. Archaeologists are scientists and historians who study ancient peoples by looking at the items and writings that they have left behind. Because the Qiya people were mainly farmers, their religious beliefs were centered around agriculture or farming. Their spring festival was one of their most important religious celebrations. The Qiya dynasty culture is best known for its bronze and gold objects. Their pottery was very important to them because it was an essential part of their home. Their pottery was decorated with art and calligraphy, which is a very beautiful and fancy form of Chinese writing. The Qiya people also were expert carvers of jade, a beautiful green and white semi-precious stone, and ivory, which comes from the teeth of some mammals. The second Chinese dynasty, the Shang dynasty, is far better known to historians and archaeologists because they have found many more artifacts than that of the Qiya dynasty. The Shang dynasty was divided into classes with the rich, nobility, some warriors being at the top, and workers, farmers, and peasants at the bottom. The upper classes loved art, music, and literature and were able to afford these luxuries. These luxuries included fine clothing that was covered in beautiful silk embroidery, each stitch in a design that was done by hand and took hundreds of hours to complete. They also adorned or decorated their clothing with beautiful jewelry made of gold and precious gems. They filled their palaces with paintings, sculptures, and carving. Warriors, who were closer to the upper class than the lower, could decorate their weapons and armor if they were rich enough from winning a lot of battles. Some warriors' armor and weaponry cost more than an entire village would make in a year. Religion was very important to the Shang people. They believed in ancestor worship and the afterlife. Ancestors are those in our family that have come before us and who have passed away. They could be parents, grandparents, or even great great great grandparents. Archaeologists have uncovered several tombs of Shang nobility. Tombs are stone buildings that are used to bury the dead. The tombs of Shang rulers contain artifacts of furniture, sculptures, weapons, and money, all things they might need in the afterlife. Some tombs of the Shang dynasty and emperors even contain the skeletons of soldiers, slaves, servants, and animals that were sacrificed to serve with them in the afterlife. Shang emperors and Shang priests used oracle bones to communicate with dead ancestors. They did this in order to seek advice about anything from whom to marry, when to plant crops, and when would be the best time to attack an enemy. The third ancient Chinese dynasty, the Shou dynasty, saw the beginning of two religions that are still practiced by people today. These are Confucianism and Taoism. Confucianism is a philosophy or an organized way of thinking founded by the well-known Shou philosopher Confucius. He lived from 551 to 479 BC and many of his teachings influenced the culture and government of the Shou dynasty and beyond. One of his main beliefs was that all men were good and could become better. He also believed that no man or woman was born lower or higher than the other. The nobility didn't agree with this because they thought that they were born into a better position and therefore were better than other people they thought to be lower. His passion was to think of a way to end suffering, poverty, sickness, and crime. Taoism was a religion philosophy that was mostly found in rural and poorer areas of China during the Shang dynasty. Taoists believe there is a balance in nature and that the same energy or Tao flows through all living things. They use the yin-yang symbol to symbolize balance. They closely observe nature and cycles in nature like the seasons. They, like Confucians, believe that people are all basically good. The art of this time can be found in beautiful carved bronze objects the Shou people left behind. They also painted on silk, an important item to Chinese culture and history, but very few paintings survived. Lacquer was also perfected during this time. Lacquer is a protective coating made from the sap of trees. It was used to protect all kinds of objects and it gave them a beautiful glass-like appearance. Famous writings were created during the Shou dynasty as well. These include the Art of War by Sun Tzu, which is a 13 chapter book on war strategy, and Zhou Zhuan or Commentary of Zhou. The Zhou Zhuan is a collection of information about history, sayings, and teachings of the ancient Chinese people. The ancient Chinese people were advanced in many areas that included art, science, and literature. Studying this history helps us understand how the ancient Chinese people lived and worked. You can also connect a lot of what's known about this history to modern China. To learn more about the ancient Chinese, please watch the first video in this series, Ancient History, Chinese Part 1. If you'd like to learn more about modern China, we have a map in our geography section where you can learn all the Chinese provinces. We also have an intro video and numerous games about the Chinese language. Until next time, keep digging deep into history and always be clever!