China and Mesoamerica

Ancient China• By 5000 B.C.E. rice became a staple

in the diet in the Chang Jiang River Valley;

• Later people further north (Huang He River Valley) domesticated wheat, barley, and millet

• By 1700 B.C.E. they had cities and complex political, cultural, and social systems that were the foundation in China

Chang Jiang AKA the Yangzi River: Rice

Huang He, AKA, the Yellow River: Wheat, Barley and millet

Ancient China: Geography• Away from other areas; they did trade but

distance and geographic features separated the area; China developed independently– Agriculture and metalworking were independently

invented• Rivers of Huang He and Chang Jiang were great

for farming (silt)• Other areas such as Gobi Desert, Himalayan

Mts., and the Tarim Basin less inhabitable• Most people, even today, live in the East along

the rivers and the coastline

In other words, most people live in the green area on the map.

Ancient China: Geography• The rivers absorbed a yellowish-

brown dust from central Asia called loess which is very fertile and could be worked with digging sticks

• Like the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers, the East Asian rivers were prone to irregular flooding– People built dikes, channels, and basins

to store water

Ancient China: Economics

• Farmers and leaders had to control flooding – Irrigation systems– Dikes to manage flow of river– Invented the hoe and four pronged

hoe which was a vast improvement over the digging stick; could feed large urban population

Ancient China: Economics• China’s growth spurred by mastery of

metallurgy esp. bronze weapons & tools– Ruling elites controlled copper and tin ores

and employed the craftsmen– Produced weapons such as spears but also

fittings for horse drawn chariots diffused to China from Mesopotamia

• High level of craftsmanship found in vessels created for religious ritual & household use by elites

• Pioneer in silk manufacturing; raising silk worms

Ancient China: Economic • Cities were centers of political control and

religion; surrounded by great walls of earth

• Public building: palaces, political centers, storehouses, royal tombs, shrines, etc

• Ordinary people lived in villages outside city walls

• Cities laid out on a grid plan aligned with north polar star, gate opened in cardinal direction, building faced South– Reflects the concern for order– Called Fengshui

Ancient China: Political

• According to legend, a dynasty, (family-based kingdom), called Xia but NO evidence of existence

• 1st known dynasty was the Shang Dynasty emerged between 1750-1500 B.C.E.– Nomadic group skilled horsemen

with army of subject peoples and other warrior leaders who swore allegiance

Ancient China: Political

• King is a intermediary between Supreme Being, Shandi, had a lot of power– People were governed by vassals,

lords that served the king and bound by personal ties

– Warrior aristocrats collected tribute (farm produce) which supported the monarchy

Ancient China: Political

• 12th century B.C.E. Shang is overthrown by the Zhou Dynasty – Kept written records, tax rolls, lists of imports &

exports, & historical info

• Dynasty falls into 2 phases: Western Zhou (11th-8th centuries B.C.E.) and Eastern Zhou (8th-5th centuries B.C.E.)

• Extended territory: decentralized, local leaders had a good deal of autonomy

• Growing bureaucrats (Shi) best educated men served as scribes, clerks, advisors and overseers– Kept records , ran public works, was, organized

rituals

Ancient China: Social

• 3 Main Social Groups• The elite: royal family,

landowning aristocracy, educated bureaucrats– Houses were lavish– Monopolized use of bronze

weapons & tools– Consumed much of the

meat– Emphasis on proper

behavior, table manners, etc.

Ancient China: Social • Next level are the peasants, free

artisans and craftsmen– Peasants didn’t own land but worked land

that belonged to nobility– Lived in earth houses– Used iron tools in the late Zhou– Had to also build roads, buildings and

irrigation projects– Artisans and craftsmen worked exclusively

for the elite– Lived in the cities in better houses than

peasants

Ancient China: Social • At the very bottom are the unskilled workers and

slaves– Performed hard labor like building walls for

cities, foundations, and clearing new fields– China did not use slaves for production

• Merchants & traders did exist but little is written about them– Long distance trade appeared during the Shang:

jade, tin, silk• Confucian emphasis on learning and political service

led to low status for merchants and traders who devoted lives to make money

Ancient China: Social • Like other ancient civilizations, women lost

status• Military success is highly valued & men

dominated politics• Rituals honoring ancestors venerated men

as important guides to the family• The matrilineal characteristics disappeared

during the Shang era• During Zhou, women lost more status due

to the fact that there were no temples erected to honor queens

Marker Event: The Mandate of Heaven

• Idea occurred when the Zhou overthrew the Shang in 12th C BCE to justify a forceful removal– Zhou rulers claimed they were given the “right” to rule from heaven– As long as the rulers were just & fair they would have confidence of

heaven, but if they were not, the mandate would be lost– Prosperity was a “sign from heaven” that the rulers still had the mandate,

but misfortunes meant that the ruler were not living up to expectations– If a ruler lost the mandate, subjects had the responsibility to replace him.

Central Belief is the Dynastic Cycle

Ancient China: Cultural Developments

• Organized religion did not play as important a role as in other ancient civilizations

• There was a heaven, but no personal deities who controlled humans and no large priestly class; a few to help with royal rituals

• Ancestor worship was an important element of “heaven”

• Rulers and family patriarchs consulted ancestors using oracle bones (turtle shells are inscribed with a question asking ancestors for help)

• Shamans would have the ability to read & interpret the information from ancestors

Ancient China: Cultural Developments

• As in Egypt & Mesopotamia, Chinese writing was pictographs and combined to communicate abstract ideas (today’s writing reflects Shang times)

• Complexity of the writing meant that only specialized people could read and write in China like Egypt & Mesopotamia, BUT writing was only associated with the King’s court NOT merchants and trade

Ancient China: Cultural Developments

• Due to the early use of writing in China, philosophy and religion developed– Confucianism is the most

famous

• Confucian values are reflected in the Analects which are instructions for proper behavior

Ancient China Comparisons

Similarities• Like other societies, China was a

patriarchy based on agriculture• Characterized by large cities,

specialized labor and massive public buildings

• Advanced political coordination and complex writing system for record keeping

Differences• Chinese emphasized families more than most due

to the veneration of ancestors (ancestors guide the living)

• Main connection with the spiritual world is through ancestors and the emperor’s status as the “Son of Heaven” through the mandate of heaven

• Did not have an array of agricultural gods or a priestly caste

• Emphasis on learning & literacy; oracle bones was the primary way to communicate with ancestors, thus literacy is highly valued

Comparing Divination in Mesopotamia and Ancient China: Divination is the method for communicating with the gods to determine the future

Mesopotamia• Priests inspected the organs of sacrificed

animals to interpret the wishes of the gods• Read the trails of smoke from incense; or

patterns formed by mixing oil and water• Saw destiny in the stars and planets;

movements in the heavens were communicated gods will: explains their success in astronomy

Ancient China• Divination was controlled by shamans

using oracle bones to read messages from the spiritual world

• The questions were answered by ancestors that passed on

• Questions varied from everything about ritual performance, the weather, or the outcome of war

Comparative Chart

Early Civilizations in the Americas• Americas were completely cut off

from the Eastern Hemisphere until 1492– Agricultural revolution was

independently invented and cultural diffusion was within the region

• Prehistoric people reached the Western Hemisphere from Asia– Crossed a land bridge

Early Civilizations in the Americas: Geography

• The tremendous distance north to south is important in the Americas– Environments vary greatly with frozen regions in

the north and tropical rain forests in the south. – Also, vast plains, heavy forests, and high

mountain ranges• These features made farming impossible in

some areas • Contact was difficult • Two places where farming was the basis for

development of civilizations were Mesoamerica (now Mexico) and the Andean Mountains along the coast in NW South America

Early Civilizations in the Americas The Olmec (1200-400 B.C.E.)

• Agricultural villages appeared in 3000 B.C.E. and spread over the region– Beans, peppers, avocados, squash, and maize– All completely different from the Eastern

Hemisphere• Only domesticated a few animals (dogs and

turkeys); No beasts of burden• Human labor provided all the labor

– No wheeled vehicles or animals to pull them• The Olmec established the first civilization

1200 B.C.E.

Early Civilizations in the Americas: The Olmec

• Olmec, also known as the “rubber people”

• Based on agriculture, but no need for irrigation due to abundant rainfall

• Not on a river!!!• Built drainage systems to control water;

raised fields to grow in wetland area• Cities grew as religious, and trade centers

– Traded salt, cacao, clay and limestone– No competitive city states like Mesopotamia

Early Civilizations in the Americas: Olmecs

• Olmec society was authoritarian and hierarchical – Elite group of priests dominated

society. conducted rituals, gave advice about rainfall, and directed city planning so they aligned with the stars

• Astronomical events were believed to influence human affairs

Olmec calendar

Early Civilizations in the Americas Olmec

• Ruler and family were another elite group– Directed labor for city building projects from

the population• Most people lived in areas outside the

cities• Skilled artisans created carvings and

sculptures for buildings and jade figurines, jewelry, and ceremonial objects

• A class of merchant traveled long distances trading in jade, obsidian rocks and pottery

Early Civilizations in the Americas: The Olmec

• Little is known, but some sort of kingship combined with religious and secular responsibilities were in major cities

• Elite lived in elaborate houses; commoners simple houses of sticks and mud

• Giant heads were sculpted from basalt symbolize the power of the ruling families

Early Civilizations in the Americas: The Olmec

• Great carvers of jade and conquered to get it

• Developed a number system based on 30 and a 365 day calendar

• Ancestors of the great Mayan civilization that will follow

• Decline is a puzzle; (between 900-600 B.C.E.)

• Scholars believe it was an internal conflict

Early Civilizations in the Americas: The Chavin (900-250 B.C.E.)

• At the same time as the Olmec, Chavin dominated a heavily populated region in the Peruvian coastal plain and the foothills of the Andes

• Did not develop in a river valley; relied on fish and sea life on the coast

• Combined a dry coast with high mountain valley with thick jungles

Early Civilizations in the Americas: The Chavin

• The capital, Chavin de Huantar was in the mountains; the intersection of trade routes– Helped them control trade and

gain economic power• Agriculture was based on Maize

which grown on the coast and potatoes and fruit grown in the mountains; Cotton was grown in the tropics

• Labor was organized by communities that shared the responsibility

• They had the llama to help with chores– Domesticated in the mountains

to carry bundles of goods in caravans

Early Civilizations in the Americas• Independently invented

metallurgical techniques• Crafts people worked n silver and

gold for ceremonial items; served the elite

• Advance production used for pottery and textiles

• Kings wore superior quality textiles and gold crowns

Early Civilizations in the Americas• Had to control the 3

ecological zones that abruptly began and ended

• Political organization needed for irrigation and protection of the land; politically well organized

• Influenced the religion of the region– Jaguar god is depicted

throughout the empire– Other animals with human

faces are also depicted

Other Early Civilizations in the Middle East, 1700-1100 B.C.E.

• By 2nd Millennium B.C.E., agricultural communities developed in the Middle East (S.W. Asia), the Americas, and East Asia– All developed trade routes; put them in contact with others..BUT the Middle East

contact was more intense• This period (1700-1100 B.C.E.) is called the Late Bronze Age– It’s Cosmopolitan which means people shared cultures and lifestyles because of

increased contact– Cultural diffusion is more than just goods; it’s also ideas, values, standards of

living• Key players were: Egypt, Mesopotamia, Hittites, Nubians, and Mycenaeans