Department:
The Museum Proper
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On Display, In Storage, or in a Private Offsite Collection:
On Display
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Classification/Category:
Communication Objects
Specific Classification:
Notable Signatures,
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Donated by:
Unknown
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Artifact Era/Dynasty:
Unknown
Creator:
Chinese
Creator Ancestry:
This extraordinary tapestry required over a year of intensive labor to create. It provides an overview of the contributions of Chinese civilization to the world’s science and technology. The major inventions and discoveries of Chinese science – paper, printing, gunpowder, and magnetism – are known as the Four Great Inventions, and have had a profound and global impact on all modern societies and cultures. These inventions also form the foundation for today’s advances in astronomy, geology, and a host of many other sciences.
This Tapestry was generously contributed by the Canada-China Friendship Association.
The bottom half of the tapestry shows the Four Great Inventions by the Chinese. In clockwise order, starting at the top left of the bottom half of the tapestry, the inventions are gunpowder, magnetism, printing, and paper making.
Gunpowder was invented in China sometime during the first millennium AD. The earliest possible reference to gunpowder appeared in 142 AD during the Eastern Han Dynasty when alchemist Wei Boyang, also know as the ‘father of alchemy’, wrote about a substance with gunpowder-like properties.Originally, gunpowder was used to make fireworks for festivals and major events. It was later utilized as an explosive substance in canons, fire-arrows, and other military weapons.
The discovery of magnetism would lead to the invention of the compass. The compass’s origins may be traced back to the Warring States period (476-221 BC), when Chinese people utilized a device known as a si nan to point in the right direction. In the case of the si nan, the compass pointed south. The invention of the compass had a profound influence on trade, war, and cultural exchange.
The top half of the tapestry shows the many many innovations that were developed with the basic principles of the Four Great Inventions.
Artifact Date:
Artifact Era/Dynasty:
Creator:
Unknown
Creator Ancestory:
Chinese
Catalogue Entry
Online References:
Department:
The Museum Proper
On Display, In Storage, or in a Private Offsite Collection:
On Display
Replica or Original:
A big tapestry
Listen
Classification/Category:
Communication Objects
Specific Classification:
Notable Signatures,
Inscriptions, and/or Markings: