Teaching Chinese Archaeology, Teaching Activities

Late Prehistoric China | Bronze Age China | Chu and Other Cultures | Early Imperial China

Teaching Activities | Resources | Chronology | Pronunciation Guide/Glossary

Teaching Activities
Archaeology | Chinese and Other Cultures

Activities are grouped into the following categories: Advanced (A), Intermediate (I), and Elementary (E)

Archaeology

Although photography has become an indispensable tool at archaeological sites, some kinds of artifacts or decorations are better seen in drawings. Making accurate, scale drawings is a skill every archaeologist must acquire. For some objects, it is best to use line drawings, for others, especially three-dimensional objects, a system of tiny dots is sometimes more effective. (See examples, right)

Your school library may have books about archaeological drawing. Web sites or catalogues can provide other examples. Have students select an object in the classroom or from home to draw in half or one-quarter scale. They should measure their objects in several dimensions and prepare profile and top views. The purpose is not to make something beautiful but to convey information.

This activity can be incorporated into the math curriculum and with a discussion of the metric system. Archaeologists, even in the United States, use metric units exclusively. Most of the measurements in this packet are metric as well. This activity could be done using both metric and English (inches) units. Class discussion could then evaluate their advantages and disadvantages. A/I

Different materials are affected in different ways by the environments in which they are buried. In the tomb of Marquis Yi, for example (see More About Excavations at the Tomb of Marquis Yi), waterlogged conditions helped to preserve lacquer but destroyed textiles. Have the class identify two different environments around your school. Then bury the same kind of objects -- these could include clay flower pots, leftover pork chops, coins, etc. -- in both places. After a month or two "excavate" the objects to see if there are differences in their appearance or state of preservation. A/I/E
As a science project, have students research the Mohs scale used to measure hardness. Jade is 6-6.5, diamond is 10. I
Any country with a rich archaeological heritage faces problems with illegal trade in antiquities. Have students research recent news articles about looting in one of these areas: Sicily, Turkey, Cyprus, Peru, Cambodia, or Central America, where there have been well-publicized incidents. I/A
Adhering to the provisions of a UN resolution, most museums will not acquire an archaeological object with an unknown provenance (the history of its ownership) or that was not already outside its country of origin before 1973. Most archaeological journals will not allow these objects to be discussed in articles they publish. Many legitimate dealers and collectors feel these are unnecessarily harsh restrictions that only serve to deprive us of knowledge. Imagine the following scenario: an alumna has offered your school an ancient statue for display in its lobby. In 1978 the statue was owned by a shadowy Swiss dealer, but there are no records of it before that. Suspicions are that it was removed illegally from Italy, but no one knows for certain. Your class is to decide whether the gift should be accepted or not. Students could be divided in two groups to debate opposite sides of the issue. As a written activity, they could be assigned to write a newspaper editorial supporting one position or the other. A
A popular children's book, Motel of the Mysteries by David Macaulay (see Resources), illustrates in a light-hearted way how easy it is to be led by our assumptions into making faulty interpretations of archaeological evidence. In the book, archaeologists far in the future discover a hotel room from the late twentieth century but assume the site to be of religious significance. This leads the investigators, for example, to interpret a television set as a religious object. Have the class outline, in group discussions, a book with a similar premise: young archaeologists in the year A.D. 3999 have uncovered your classroom. No similar sites have yet been found from this now-ancient culture. Here are a few questions to start discussion: How do the future archaeologists interpret the blackboard; what significance do they attribute to its color and material? What do they assume is reflected in the difference between the teacher's desk and students' desks or in the arrangement of desks in rows or a circle? On what basis do they decide how this room was originally used? What do they make of its east-west (or north-south) orientation?

In doing this activity the class could compile a list of questions that help determine how an unknown object was used. These might include: Where was it found? What was it found with? Was it decorated? How was it decorated? Does it resemble known objects? Was it a unique object or one of many examples? A/I/E

Bronze vessels. Drawings adapted from J. Rawson, ed., The British Museum Book of Chinese Art (London 1992) figs. 229-231.

In many cases, archaeologists can determine an object's function by its form. Among the bronzes from Shang and Zhou burials, most are vessels for food or wine. Distribute copies of the typical shapes (pictured right) to students and have them determine which were used for liquids and which for solid food, which for heating, and which for pouring or drinking. I/E
Cities, counties, and states in every part of the country have archaeologists on staff, as does the National Park Service. Have the class research what projects and concerns government archaeologists have in your area. It may be possible for older students to volunteer as assistants for field work. A
When builders digging foundations uncover archaeological material they must normally report it to local authorities. Have students research the rules in effect in your area. What laws govern the ownership of the material? How is the construction work affected? A
In conjunction with the science curriculum, have groups of students research the following: radiocarbon dating, thermoluminesce (TL) dating, potassium argon dating, isotopic analysis, drendrochronology, the use of infrared photography, magnetometers, and satellite imagery in archaeology, and archaeological uses for measurements of soil conductivity. They should present their findings to the entire class, reporting on how the techniques work and what their uses and limitations are. If possible they should include specific examples of objects that have been redated or whose authenticity has been established by these means. A

Conservation is an important part of archaeology. Students can get a feel for the difficulties involved by trying to mend a pot. Decorate several flower pots with simple designs in ink and break them into many small fragments (sherds). The class should then work to reassemble and glue the pieces. Sherds can be supported during the mending process in a bowl of dry lentils or rice. E

Chinese and other cultures

Have students create a parallel timeline for the Chronology, listing contemporary developments in other cultures. A/I/E
Dragons are among the motifs we associate most strongly with China and Chinese culture. Discuss with students how we identify a dragonwhat are the essential characteristics of this imaginary creature? As a research project, have them consider how dragons are represented in China and what their qualities were. In China, dragons were thought to be benevolent and came to be associated with the emperor. Have students compare Chinese and Western conceptions of dragons: how their lore differs, and what different symbolic roles they served. Students might also research the tiger and phoenix.

Have students create their own mythical (or hybrid) creature, describing how it looks and behaves, where it lives, what it eats, and what its virtues (or vices) are. Have them write and illustrate a short story explaining how the creature came into being. I/E
All dates in this packet are given as B.C. (before Christ) or A.D. (Anno Domini). Archaeological writing, however, commonly uses the designations of bce (before the current, or common, era) and ce (anno Domini, year of our Lord), though some prefer to give dates as bp (before present). In China, the succession of ruling dynasties was used for dating from a very early period: "the first year of the Yong Zheng era," for example. In all cases, the designations tell us something about the culture that uses them. Have students research other systems in use in the world today, including those of the Hebrew and Islamic calendars. Have them convert significant dates in American history (the landing of the Mayflower, the Declaration of Independence, the Emancipation Proclamation, the D-Day landing, etc.) into these different systems. E
In China the afterlife was apparently unthinkable without music, as suggested by the set of bells buried with Peng, minister at the court of Chu in the sixth century B.C., and the graceful musicians who lined the tomb of Wang Chuzhi almost 1,500 years later. Seek out performances of Chinese music in your area or obtain recordings to play in class. Assign students to research Chinese music, comparing its very different structure to the tonal systems of most Western music. I/E
Omitting specific mention of the word "strings," read students these lines from "Song of the Lute: Preface and Poem" by Bo Zhuyi (from the Columbia Book of Chinese Poetry, B. Watson, ed.) while showing the marble relief from the tomb of Wang Chuzhi. Have them guess which instrument is being described. Discuss the poet's use of onomatopoetic devices to capture the sound of the strings played in different ways and have the students write their own poems that recreate the sounds of another instrument they see in the relief or one they play themselves. I/E

She turned the pegs, brushed the strings,
   sounding two or three notes
before they had formed a melody, already
   the feeling came through.
Each string seemed tense with it, each sound
   to hold a thought
as though she were protesting a lifetime of
   wishes unfulfilled.
...
Lightly she pressed the strings, slowly
   plucked, pulled, and snapped them,
first performing, "Rainbow Skirts,"
   the "Waists of Green."
The big strings plang-planged like
   swift-falling rain;
the little strings went buzz-buzz like secret
   conversations;
plang-plang, buzz-buzz mixed and mingled
   in her playing
like big pearls and little pearls falling on a
   plate of jade
...
Have the class make a bell in clay or a stone chime, decorating it with motifs like those seen on bronze objects in this packet or with an inscription commemorating a school event. E
Part of the inscription on the pan vessel from hoard 1 at Zhuangbai extolled the merits of the ruling king and members of the Wei family. Some lines give us an indication of what traits were considered most worthy in a ruler:

Accordant with antiquity was the Cultured King!
He first brought harmony to government.
Di on High sent down fine virtue and great security
Extending it above and below,
He joined the ten thousand countries...
Model and sagely was the Completed King!
To the left and right he cast and gathered his net and line,
Therewith opening and integrating the Zhou country.
Deep and wise was the Vigorous King!
He divided command and pacified the borders.

(trans. adapted from Sources of Western Zhou History: Inscriptions on Bronze Vessels, E. Shaughnessy, ed.)

Read these lines to the class and have them identify individual words or phrases (such as "harmony," "security," "accordant with antiquity," and "model") that point to certain qualities. Then have students compile a similar list of words that embody contemporary ideals of leadership in the United States. As a research project, students can be asked to relate the qualities of leadership outlined in the pan inscription to Confucian ideals. I
Have students assemble research comparing burial traditions in Bronze Age China with those in ancient Egypt or other cultures, considering such things as how bodies were prepared, what objects have been found with them, what tomb structures were used, etc. A/I
Jade was held in highest esteem in ancient China (see More About Jade) in part because of its purity, beauty, and durability but also because it required long and difficult effort to fashion it. Furthermore, its brittleness made it impractical for use in stone tools, setting jade apart from other, more ordinary stone. The symbolic importance of jade outweighed its practical value. In classroom discussion have students identify materials in our own culture that are highly valued. Ask them to think about what makes them valuable and about how future archaeologists will determine that we hold them in esteem. A/I
Discuss with the class the piece-mold method of bronze casting (see Parcel-gilt silver casket with the Four Guardian Kings) and have them independently research lost-wax casting techniques. Showing slides of Marquis Yi's zun-pan and Fu Hao's owl zun discuss in class the impact of technical aspects of manufacture on the way the two vessels look. A/I
Have students make their own "terra-cotta" army (or marching band or other group of figures) in whatever material is available in your school. These could even be drawings done on the four sides and top of shoe boxes. The point is to focus their attention on the level of detail the Han clay workers included. I/E
Give students the dimensions of the kneeling archer and have them calculate how much area the First Emperor's army of more than 7,000 soldiers occupied. How much of your school would that be? I/E

Late Prehistoric China | Bronze Age China | Chu and Other Cultures | Early Imperial China

Teaching Activities | Resources | Chronology | Pronunciation Guide/Glossary