Chinese Inventions

Chinese History

Period: 300 BCE to 1400

Compass

250 BCE

The first Chinese compasses were pieces of a magnetic mineral
called lodestone. This worked because the Earth is a giant magnet.

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.

Porcelain

50

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.

Paper

150

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.

Paddle boat

450

In the 5th century, the Chinese adapted this idea by arranging a series of paddles in a wheel. People walked
on a treadmill to turn the paddle-wheel, which in turn moved through the water, moving the boat forward.

Bridge

618

The new Chinese bridge used arches that were a smaller part, or segment, of a circle. This made the bridges broader and flatter than
semicircular arches could. Called a segmental arch bridge,
the new type of bridge took less material to build and was
stronger, as well.

Tea

750

For several thousand years, tea—made by letting tea leaves steep in boiling water—was drunk mostly as medicine. However, by
the 8th century C.E., tea had become a hugely popular everyday beverage throughout China.

Paper money

790

Paper money was invented by the Chinese in the late 8th or early 9th century. Before that time, coins were the only
form of currency.

Gunpowder

850

Chinese Alchemists accidentally accidentally discovered when looking for secret to eternal life.