Song Dynasty outline for class before China trip

7. Sui Dynasty around the year 600 AD

10. “History and Culture of the Song Dynasty”
Compiled by Robert Ponzio
Chair, Fine Arts
Oak Hall School
Map
960–1279 AD

11. The Grand Canal
China’s ancient “Super Highway”
helped keep the culture unified.

12. Advances in Agriculture
New developments in
irrigation and rice
cultivation, especially the
introduction of new strains
of Rice from Champa
(Vietnam), spectacularly
increased rice yields.
As a result the population,
which had never before
exceeded 60 million, grew
to 100 million by 1127.
Many Song Dynasty
agricultural techniques are
still in use today

13. Vibrant Market Economy
The basic unit of payment
was copper coins strung on a
string, but these were heavy
and cumbersome for use in
large-scale transactions.
The Song solution was to
print paper money — Helping
to grease the wheels of trade.
Marco Polo's report of this
was met with incredulity in
the West.

14. Major
Manufactured
Product:
Silk

15. The Silk Road
• The Silk Road - A Vast Network of Trade Routes
During the first millennium B.C.E. through the middle of the second millennium C.E., a vast
network of trade routes known as the "Silk Road" linked the people and traditions of Asia with
those of Europe. These historic routes served as a major conduit for the transport of
• Important scientific knowledge, technological innovations and material goods migrated between
East and West and resulted in the first global exchange of scientific and cultural traditions.

16. “The Spring Festival Along the River”
A Hand Scroll by
Zhang Zeduan

22. Advancement
in the Arts:
Ceramics
Ewer, Northern Song dynasty (960–1127), 11th–
12th century; Yaozhou ware China
Stoneware with incised, carved, and relief
decoration under glaze; H. 8 1/4 in. (21 cm)
Gift of Mrs. T. Samuel Peters, 1926 (26.292.73)

23. Calligraphy
Scroll for Zhang Datong, dated 1100
Huang Tingjian (Chinese, 1045–1105)
Handscroll; ink on paper; 34.1 x 552.9 cm
The Art Museum, Princeton University
Gift of John B. Elliott
Poem Written in a Boat on the Wu River, Northern Song Dynasty (960–1127), ca. 1100
Mi Fu (Chinese, 1052–1107) China
Handscroll; ink on paper; 44 columns in running-cursive script; 12 1/4 in. x 18 ft. 3 1/4 in. (31.1 x 557 cm)
Gift of John M. Crawford Jr., in honor of Professor Wen Fong, 1984 (1984.174)

24. Painting
Summer Mountains, Northern Song dynasty (960–1127), 11th century
Attributed to Qu Ding (Chinese, active ca. 1023–ca. 1056) China
Handscroll; ink and pale color on silk; 17 7/8 x 45 3/8 in. (45.4 x 115.3 cm)
Ex coll.: C.C. Wang Family, Gift of The Dillon Fund, 1973 (1973.120.1)

25. Emperor Huizong
was also a great painter and
calligrapher who invented
the "Slender Gold" style.
Auspicious Cranes
Song Dynasty 1082 – 1135

26. Great Advances in Science, Math and Medicine
“The Golden Age of
Mathematics” occurred
under the Song.
Advances were also made
in medicine, as the first
autopsy was performed in
about 1145 AD on the
body of a Southern
Chinese captive.
Chinese Armillary

27. Shen Kuo (Kua)
Born: 1031 - Died: 1095
Scientist, Mathematician, General,
Diplomat, Financial Officer, Geologist,
Meteorologist, Astronomer, and
Engineer.
In 1086 he created a book
“The Dream Pool
Essays”
or Meng Xi Bi Tan
within which he attempted to compile
all of the scientific knowledge of his day
He also documented within it the
knowledge of the common people,
the creative inventions and
innovations created by those who
were not of the literati.
This book still survives
today.

28. Shen Kuo formulated an hypothesis for the process of land formation:
Observed fossil shells in a mountain hundreds
of miles from the ocean. Inferred that the land
was formed by erosion of the mountains and
by deposition of silt.

29. Inventor of Navigation Compass
He discovered that the
compasses do not point north,
but to a magnetic north pole.
That was the decisive step to
make them useful for
navigation.
Mariner's compass, with a floating magnetized
needle pointing north and south.
South Facing Chinese Compass. model of the first A further refinement in the box compass
instrument known to be a compass. The spoon is of (to the right) is from about 1200 CE, and is
magnetic loadstone, and the plate is of bronze much more suitable for navigation.

30. Advances in Construction Techniques

31. Printing Press w/ Movable Type
Invented by Pi Sheng between 1041 and 1048, and a
page printed from it.
Movable type was not invented by Johann
Gutenberg, in 1423 as is universally believed in the
West.
This reproduction was made from the detailed
description by Shen Kuo which survives from 1086.

32. Confucianism
•Provided a philosophy for people
to live by, a convincing account of
the natural and human world, and
a theoretical framework for state
and society.
• Emphasizes self-cultivation as a
path not only to self-fulfillment
but to the formation of a virtuous
and harmonious society and state.
Learning to be a better and wiser
person goes hand in hand with
service to the larger social body.
Ask me about: Mencius
vs. Xunxi!

33. Public School
System
Confucius taught:
•All people possessed the same
potential
•Education was the corrective
means to ensure ethical
behavior.
•Confucius made education available to students from all classes.
•Education in China has been an equalizing force from ancient times. It became a
means by which individuals from even the humblest backgrounds could rise to great
heights.
•The ethics of Confucius which informed the curriculum, was a powerful mechanism
for implementing the ethical and social norms of Chinese society.

34. The Examination
System
Since the Sui Dynasty (581-617), passing a series of examinations led to office in the
civil service. It was only in the Song, however, that the examination system came
to be considered the normal ladder to success.
•Exams based on a command of Confucian texts.
•Honesty was ensured by identifying papers by number rather than the candidate's
name.
•Examination taking could become a lifetime endeavor.
•Competition was keen from the start, but became intolerable by the end of the Song
Dynasty.
Those successful at passing the exams are known as
The Literati
(or The Gentry)

35. Cell Used by Students Taking the Imperial Exams

38. A Gift from
Emperor Huizong
•He was also one of the three Chinese
emperors to prohibit Buddhism.

39. Buddhism
Chinese, Northern Song Dynasty
Guanyin, 11th century
wood with polychrome and gilt
39 inches high
The Iron Pagoda, Kaifeng

42. Women of the Song
• Under the Song, many women gained rights to own property,
the ability to inherit, and to control their children's education.
• Women also ran businesses and oversaw family budgets.

43. The Lily Foot

45. Foot Binding
While foot binding was finally outlawed in 1911,
it was not until the Chinese Cultural Revolution of the 1940s and '50s that it was
genuinely obliterated.

47. Song Shipbuilding
The Song were world leaders in
ship-building including water-
tight compartments and
stern-post rudders.
Their ships contained as many as
Typical
four decks, six masts, a dozen Viking Ship
sails and held 500 sailors. 1000 AD

48. The Song period improvements in speed, adaptability to marine
conditions, and steadiness.
A strong navy of an attacking army could come right up to a riverside city.
If a ship's deck was high enough, soldiers could step from it to the top of
the city's wall.

49. "Sea Hawks," as the type of ship above was called, had floating boards on each side to
stabilize the ship. (it is difficult to distinguish the oars from these boards.)
Song ships were also strengthened with iron in the hull.
Some had several decks to keep the ship steady.
Song battleships were equipped with fire-bomb catapults and incendiary arrows that used
gunpowder. Sometimes protected stations on upper decks were created for crossbowmen
who also played the role of watchmen.

50. "Whirlwind"
The Military catapult
The Song possessed superior militarily technology rather
than military skills.
Determined to keep power out of the hands of the military
leaders, Song rulers reduced the status of its military men.
No longer could officials move between the civil and
military services.
Some soldiers were tattooed to keep them from deserting.
"Bamboo
fire
hawk"
"Thunderbolt-ball"
Raised "flower"
and ball bombs

51. Fire cart
Fire oxen

52. Flame Throwers & Canons
"Fire-spurting lances" were also invented during
the Song. Bamboo was used as a barrel to hold the
gunpowder, though by the Song, metal barrels
were also used. Some had narrow barrels and
could be held by one person. Others were
mounted on wooden frames and can be
understood to precede the modern cannon; these
were called eruptors.

53. Emperor Huizong’s
System of Tributes
•Huizong neglected the army, and Song China
became increasingly weak and at the mercy of
foreign enemies.
•Emperor Huizong extended a system of tributes
where gold, silk, grains and other goods were
offered in exchange for peace.
•It didn’t work, the Song was invaded in 1126. The
enemy crossed the Yellow River and came in sight
of Kaifeng, the capital of the Song empire.
•Stricken with panic, Huizong abdicated his throne
to his son (who became Emperor Qinzong) & fled.
•He was captured and spent the last 8 years of his
life as a captive.
The man who once had been the most powerful ruler on earth and
had lived in opulence and art, died a broken man in far-away
Northern Manchurian prison in 1135 at the age of 52.

54. In 1126, The Song was invaded by a semi-nomadic people from northeast Asia, (the Jurchens).
They captured the capital at Kaifeng and founded their own Jin dynasty in the north. The Song
court reestablished itself in Hangzhou, where it continued to rule for another 150 years as the
Southern Song dynasty.

55. "Lady Liang" ( 梁氏 )
"The Heroic and Valiant Lady of Yang"
( 英烈杨国夫人 ).
General Liang Hongyu (1102–1135)
Liang and her force fought a fierce
campaign against the invading Jurchen
forces, winning battle after battle.
On October 6, 1135, she died a heroic death
in battle. As she led a raid on a Jurchen
supply line with a small elite cavalry force.
They unwittingly walked into an ambush and
were outnumbered 10 to 1. In the midst of
battle, Liang was mortally wounded when her
Abdomen was slashed.
With about 3 feet of intestines dangling outside her belly. She realized this would be her final
battle. She used all her remaining strength to push her intestines back into her belly and wrapped
the wound with a long scarf around her waist, charged forward and said to her followers…
"Today is the day I die for my country!"
Her body rests in Suzhou.

56. Yue Fei
• Days after his birth, flooding of the
Yellow River destroyed Yue Fei's
village.
• His father drowned in the floods, but
not before he had ensured the
survival of his wife and son by
floating them downstream in a jar.
• Yue Fei became proficient in warfare
at an early age. As a young man
narrowly escaped execution after
killing the Prince of Liang in a martial
arts tournament.
• He did not join the fight against the
Jurchen invaders until he was 23.

57. The ultimate.
loyalty.
is to serve.
Your Country.
The Most Famous Tattoo in Chinese History
Yue Fei : Famous general of the Southern Song Dynasty.
While serving as a soldier defending the Jin from the North, his commanding Field
Marshal went over to the enemy. In disgusted, Yue Fei returned home to care for his
mother.
His mother was displeased, and lectured him that a soldier's first duty is loyalty to his
country. To be sure that this would never be forgotten, she tattoo the words on his back!
Yue Fei went back and led another army to defend the country.

59. Yue Fei “Return My
Country”!
Book Sword
書 劍
氣
香
非
不 關
Yue Fei:
Scholar, Artist, 是 月
Warrior 花

60. Famous Bad Guy!
Qin Gui
• born 1090 - died 1155
Chief counselor to the Southern Song
Emperor.
He maintained external security by
signing a peace with the Jurchen in
the north and internal security by
undermining the power of leading
generals, notably Yue Fei, who had
argued for war with the Jurchen.
Qin Gui had Yue Fei Killed.
Qin Gui is remembered as China’s
greatest traitor.

61. Yue Fei’s “No Spitting”
Temple and Tomb
•
Yue Fei was only 39 at the time he was executed.
Yue Fei was soon cleared of the groundless charges and a temple was
built in his memory by West Lake in Hangzhou.
Before Yue Fei's tomb are four cast-iron kneeling figures, with chests
bare and hands bound behind their backs to kneel forever before the
tomb.

62. Mongols (Yuan dynasty, 1279-1368)- after defeating the Jurchen in the early 13th
century, The Mongols went on and fully defeated the Song to control all of China.

64. Hangzhou
Capitol City of the
Southern Song 1125- 1279AD
West Lake

65. Marco Polo
Marco Polo (1254-1324),
The famous Venetian traveled on the Silk Road. His journey through Asia
lasted 24 years. He reached further than any of his predecessors, beyond
Mongolia to China. He became a confidant of Kublai Khan (1214-1294). He
traveled the whole of China and returned to tell the tale, which became the
greatest travelogue.

66. Global Artistic & Education Outreach
Robert Ponzio Oak hall

67. Global Artistic & Education Outreach
Robert Ponzio Oak hall