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200 BCE
Steel
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. The Chinese were the first to learn how to make cast iron by melting and molding iron ore. Later they learned that blowing air into molten, or melted, cast iron causes a chemical
reaction that creates steel. Steel is a great deal stronger than iron. -
Period: 200 BCE to 1400
Chinese Inventions
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100
Porcelain
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. -
150
Paper
The Chinese invented the art of paper making 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.Paper making became an important industry in China. For more than 500 years, the Chinese were the only people in the world who knew the secret of making paper. -
206
Compass
The first Chinese compass was just pieces of magnetic mineral called lodestone. It has since evolved. -
600
Bridges
The Chinese also found ways to improve bridges. For example, a Chinese engineer completed a new type of arched bridge. -
750
Tea
Chinese have been drinking tea since at least 2700 B.C. 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. Tea -
800
Paper Money
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. Like game cards, paper money was printed with wood blocks. By 1107, Song printers were using multiple wood blocks to print each bill. A single bill would have many colors. Paper money is the most common form of currency in the world today. -
850
Gunpowder
Chinese alchemists accidentally discovered gunpowder while looking for the secret of eternal life. -
1300
Rocket Technology
Rocket technology was developed in China during the Song dynasty. Rockets were powered by a black powder made of saltpeter, charcoal, and sulfur. At first, rockets were used only in fireworks. Later, the Chinese used them as weapons. They even developed a two-stage rocket for their armies. The first stage propelled the rocket through the air. The second stage dropped arrows down on the enemy.
