Chinese Discoveries & Inventions

Tea

2700 BCE

The Chinese have been drinking tea since at least 2700 B.C. Tea farmers grow small tea trees or shrubs on high ground typically above 4,000 feet. During the Tang Dynasty, the first tea-plant seeds were brought to Japan.

Paper Money

900 BCE

The Chinese invented the art of papermaking by the second century C.E. The earliest Chinese paper was
probably made from hemp and then the bark of the mulberry tree. Later, the Chinese used rags.

Gunpowder

900 BCE

The Chinese who first made gunpowder were alchemists, people who practiced a blend of science and magic known as alchemy. By the 10th century, the Chinese had made the first weapon that used gunpowder: the flamethrower. Early flamethrowers contained gunpowder mixed with oil. The Chinese used them to spray enemies with a stream of fire.

Clock

800 BCE

The Chinese developed the first mechanical clock in about the 8th
century. The new clock was more accurate than earlier timekeeping devices, such as sundials and hourglasses. The Chinese devised a wheel that made one complete turn every 24 hours. Dripping water made the wheel turn.

Bridges

618 BCE

The Chinese also found ways to improve bridges. For example, a Chinese engineer completed a new type of arched bridge. In Europe, Roman-designed bridges rested on arches that were half-circles.

Printing

600 BCE

In about the 7th century, the Chinese invented a technique called woodblock printing. The printer covered the characters with black and by the 8th century, there was an entire woodblock fprinting industry in China.

The Compass

200 BCE

The first Chinese compasses were pieces of a magnetic mineral called lodestone. Compasses made long sea voyages possible because sailors could figure out directions even without a landmark or a point in the sky to steer by.

Paper

200 BCE

The Chinese invented the art of papermaking by the second century C.E. The earliest Chinese paper was probably made from hemp and then the bark of the mulberry tree. Later, the Chinese used rags.

Steel

200 BCE

The Chinese first made steel, a very useful metal, before 200 B.C.E. Steel is made from iron, but it is less brittle than iron and easier to bend into different shapes. The earliest Chinese steel was made from cast iron.

Porcelain

100 BCE

Another Chinese invention is a type of fine pottery called porcelain. Some historians think that the Chinese produced the first porcelain as early as the 1st century C.E. Porcelain is made by combining clay with the minerals quartz and feldspar.

Medicine

100 BCE

The Chinese discovered another way to prevent the spread of disease. A Chinese monk recommended steaming the clothes of sick people. He believed that the steam would prevent others from becoming ill. The idea was sound, because hot temperatures kill many germs. Today, people boil medical instruments to kill
disease-causing germs.

Rocket

1200

Rocket technology was developed in China during the Song dynasty. Rockets were powered by a black powder made of saltpeter, charcoal, and sulfur. By 1300, rockets had spread through much of Asia and into Europe.