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The Song dynasty (/ s ʊ ŋ /) was an imperial dynasty of China that ruled from 960 to 1279. The dynasty was founded by Emperor Taizu of Song, who usurped the throne of the Later Zhou dynasty and went on to conquer the rest of the Ten Kingdoms, ending the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period.
- Movable-Type Printing
- Paper Money
- Gunpowder
- The Compass
- The Astronomical Clock Tower
- The Armillary Sphere
- The Star Chart
- Solar Terms Calendar
Block printing had existed in China since at least the Tang dynasty, but the system of printing was made more convenient, popular and accessible under the Song. The early process involved a primitive system where words or shapes were carved onto wooden blocks, while ink was applied on the surface. The printing was fixed and a whole new board had to...
Throughout ancient history, Chinese citizens had carved their writings on oracle bones, stones and wood, until a new paper-making process was invented by Cai Lun, who was a eunuch court official of the Eastern Han dynasty (25-220 AD). Paper had existed before Lun’s process, but his genius was in improving the complicated process of paper production...
Gunpower was probably first formulated under the Tang dynasty, when alchemists, searching for a new ‘elixir of life’, discovered that mixing 75% saltpeter, 15% charcoal and 10% sulphur created a loud fiery bang. They named it ‘fire medicine’. During the Song dynasty, gunpowderwas introduced as a weapon of war in the guise of early landmines, cannon...
In its early guise, the compass was used to harmonise houses and buildings to principles of feng shui. The earliest compass model, based on the works of Hanfucious (280-233 BCE), was a south-pointing ladle or spoon called Si Nan, which means ‘south governor’ and was made with lodestone, a naturally magnetised mineral that aligns itself with the ear...
In 1092 AD, statesman, calligrapher and botanist Su Song went down in history as the inventorof the water-driven astronomical clock tower. The exquisite clock contained three sections: the upper being an armillary sphere, the middle a celestial globe and the lower a calculagraph. It informed of the time of day, day of the month and the phase of the...
An armillary sphere is a globe comprising various spherical rings, each of which represents an important line of longitude and latitude or a celestial circle, such as the equator and the tropics. Although the instrument first emerged during the Tang dynasty in 633 AD, consisting of three layers to calibrate different astronomical observations, it w...
From 1078 AD, the Song dynasty’s bureau of astronomy systematically carried out observations of the heavens and made extensive records. Song astronomers drew up a star chart based on the records and had it inscribed on a large stele in Suzhou, Jiangsu province. Star charts had existed in various forms since ancient times, but the Song dynasty’s fam...
In ancient China, astronomical observations typically served agriculture. Early in the Song dynasty, a lunisolar calendar was introduced although there was a discrepancy between the phases of the moon and the terms of the sun which often resulted in delays to important farming events. In order to establish the precise relationship between moon phas...
- Richard Bevan
Aug 11, 2024 · Tang dynasty, (618–907 ce), Chinese dynasty that succeeded the short-lived Sui dynasty (581–618), developed a successful form of government and administration on the Sui model, and stimulated a cultural and artistic flowering that amounted to a golden age.
- The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica
The Tang dynasty (/ t ɑː ŋ /, [6]; Chinese: 唐朝 [a]), or the Tang Empire, was an imperial dynasty of China that ruled from 618 to 907, with an interregnum between 690 and 705. It was preceded by the Sui dynasty and followed by the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period.
Learn about the Song dynasty (960-1279), a period of cultural brilliance and political turmoil in China. Explore its history, art, literature, and fall to the Mongols.
- The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica
Dec 21, 2017 · Learn about the Tang Dynasty, a golden age of Chinese arts and culture that lasted from 618 to 906 A.D. Explore its history, achievements, poetry, printing and Buddhism.
Sep 26, 2017 · Learn about the Song dynasty (960-1279 CE), which ruled China after the collapse of the Tang dynasty. Explore its political, economic, and cultural achievements, as well as its challenges and conflicts.
