Ancient China Flashcards
Ancient China is comparable to what civilizations
Ancient River Valley civilizations
(Egypt and Mesopotamia)
the earliest settlements in Neolithic China were surrounded by what
rivers
what were the rivers that surrounded the early Netholithic China settlements
- Yellow River
- Yangtze River
Where was the Yello River located
northern near Tianjin
Where was the Yangtze river located
central, southern near Shanghai
Jade Congs was from what culture (specific)
Lingzhu culture
shape of congs
had a square outside with a circular inside
what was more common to find in the graves
the bi or congs
bi
where would bi be found in the gravesites
on the stomach or chest of the body
what does the long cong repersent
heaven and earth
the outside of the cong was decorated with what
abstract face patterns/decorative masked figures
what is the significance of jade carvings
very hard to carve without tools and was seen as very expensive and highly valued
what is more valued than gold and silver
jade
2 kinds of primary surviving decorative ritual objects
congs and bi
what is the assumption of the bi and cong association
with death rituals
when did China have significant artistic bronze production
about 2000 BCE
what was often depicted in the bronze work
animals imagined and real
what are bronze objects associated with
with rulers and often found in their tombs
Taotie Motif
an abstract zoomorphic form that is symmetrical with eyes, horns and sometimes fangs but NO lower jaw
How can Taotie Motif be abstracted
they are simplified to their essence until they are almost unrecognizable unless looked at very crafully
what is the Da Ke Ding vessel a symbol of
the global power that he held and how he was the ruler of all China (maybe even the world)
the first emperor of Qin Dynasty is often related to the
Imperial China
why and when did large sections of China unify
in 210 BCE Qin Shi Huangdi united the warring regions as one
who was the first emperor of Qin Dynasty
Qin Shi Huangdi
what 5 things did Qin Shi Huangdi do
- first unifying Emperor of China
- develops a centralized bureaucracy
- enforces unified language, writing and coinage regulations
- connects forts along the northern border of Great Wall
- tries to suppress spread of Confucianism and Buddhism
what was the result of Huangdi’s bureaucracy
allowed civilization to flourish
what did the stela around Huangdi’s realm say
his rule and power
The burial mound for the first emperor of Qin was surrounded by what
a large number of other burials and three pits filled with terracotta army statues
what was the main point of the burial mound for the first emperor of Qin
to house the emperor after his death which was unusual for that time
what was the burial mound for the first emperor of Qin a show of
his power
what did the burial mound for the first emperor of Qin mirror
the city he lived in more specifically his palace
what was the burial mound for the first emperor of Qin suppose to be after his death
buried
what else could be found at the burial mound for the first emperor of Qin
bodies of exotic animals with weapons
mass graves of followers executed at that time
the great terracotta army are what
individualized and life size
how are the terracotta army figures distinct
from the mixing and matching of pieces
the terracotta army would have been orginally
painted
when was the Han Dynasty
206 BCE to 220 CE
what were the 3 events doing the Han Dynasty
- Confucianism gets promoted by the state
- Daoism gets promoted by state
- China takes control of West and opens trade
what is an example of Han Dynasty opening trade routes
silk road
Confucius was a person who emphasized
proper, virtuous and moral individual behaviour to create a harmonious society based on balance
Confucius was a person who emphasized
proper, virtuous and moral individual behaviour to create a harmonious society based on balance
how is Confucianism society based on the balance
balance of individual needs with needs of society
Daoism based on ideas from the
Book of the Way
Daoism
Emphasizes living in harmony with the spirit of all things
what is important in art from Han Dynasty
Daoism
According to Daoism, one should live a
simple life
Elites are, like emperor
creating significant tributes to the afterlife
what are the coffins and silks of Lady Dai an example of
how the elites were like emperors
Lots of Chinese art is on fabric which means
it is faded over time
what is one of the oldest paintings we have
Funeral banner of Lady Dai from 2nd century BCE
where would the Funeral Banner of Lady Dai have been found
found in the nesting coffins
what do the registers of the Funeral Banner of Lady Dai story tell
the passage of Lady Dai from the underworld to the heavenly realm
what is the purpose of fantastical dragons
they move between the 2 realms as a transitional phase between life and death
what is typical of Chinese paintings
- the material is silk
- strong outlines of the figures
what is significant about Chinese figure outlines in art
they have a caligraphy flow to them
what happened in 338 CE in China
when Buddhist arrive and spread Buddhism
What is happening in China when Buddhism arrives
the Northern and Southern Dynasties were struggling for control
what Dynasty is the Seated Buddha from
Zhao Dynasty
what was the difference between Buddhism in China and India
China’s was more focused on meditation
what is significant about the Seated Buddha’s size
it is small and would have been transported by trade routes
what is the Seated Buddha made out of
gilded bronze
gilded bronze
a bronze statue covered in a thin layer of gold
what is different from the Buddha at the Yungang Caves to India
- Buddha was more remote
- it was huge
how was the Buddha at the Yungang Caves more remote
- it was huge = distant from the prayer
- bodies are idealized
- drapery was not natural
how are the Buddha at the Yungang Caves and Inda SIMILAR
- both have top knots showing enlightenment
- large extended ears
how was the Buddha seen as political
when the emperor died, they become Buddhas.
Vericana Buddha
the Buddha of all the others
what was the Detail of the Admonitions Scroll attributed to
Gu Kaizhi
Detail of the Admonitions Scroll was a ____ dynasty copy in _____ CE
Tang and 6th to 8th century
why are hand scrolls important
very long made from painted scenes are are to be viewed as a process
what could the owner do to a scroll
add a new pannel and comment on it
what were scrolls made in relation with
pottery
the Detail of the Admonitions Scroll was not about
burial but about living
why don’t early scrolls often survive
made from silk
the scrolls were often owned by
rich society
what does the text of a scroll describe
the images
what was the Detail of the Admonitions Scroll tell about
the man is telling the empress how not to behave
Fu Kuan
artist who painted landscape paintings as an expression of neo-Confucian ideals of living in harmony
by the 900s, what had developed
a strong landscape tradition of imagined sites
what is very closely related to writing
painting
what type of painting is Travelers by Streams and Mountains
monochrome
what was thought of as a holy place in Chinese spirituality
mountains
what were Chinese landscape art used as a symbol for
the depth that is different from Western traditions
Floating perspective
indicates multiple viewpoints combined in a single work
what do the elevated position and varying levels of finish encourage us to do
wander in our minds into the imaginative space
what belief is fundamental to Daoism
living in harmony with the natural
what are the main Chinese philosophical/religious systems
- Daoism
- Confucianism
- Buddhism
Neo-Confucian
merges the elements of Buddhism with Confucianism and Daoism
