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Ancient China

Ancient China

Homo erectus reached what is now China more than a million years ago, while written records date back beyond 1200BC. Archaeologists are even now adding to and expanding our understanding of the rich history of ancient China and pre-Chinese civilisations.

last updated:

9 September, 2024

Chinese culture

Why is the Chinese calendar based on the sun’s movement?

Ancient Chinese scholars devised a calendar to help them understand nature, comprising 24 solar terms of 15 days. Each solar term, from Ching Ming to Dongzhi, has its own activities and traditions.

24 Jul 2023 - 5:24PM

Chinese artifacts

Chinese Bodhisattva statue from 12th century found in France

11 Aug 2023 - 4:53PM

Chinese history

Bronze Age relics found in China

21 Jun 2022 - 5:30PM

Artefacts reveal mysteries of ancient China

14 Jun 2022 - 12:14PM

Unearthing China’s Sanxingdui culture

9 Jun 2021 - 7:18PM

Ancient scriptures unearthed in Tibet

4 May 2021 - 10:00PM

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Granny’s big solo road trip, baby girls abandoned in Hong Kong, and more

12 Apr 2021 - 10:54AM

Archaeology and palaeontology

Artefacts from mystery civilisation found in China

22 Mar 2021 - 2:29PM

107 houses of iconic village in Yunnan, lost after one devastating fire

China’s 400-year-old houses of Wengding were lost after a devastating fire.

2 Mar 2021 - 3:30PM

Lonely defenders of the ancient Loulan kingdom

1 Mar 2021 - 8:08PM

Archaeology and palaeontology

Ancient Chinese tombs found at airport site

25 Feb 2021 - 8:31PM

Century-old house moved to avoid China floods

31 Jul 2020 - 3:44PM

Chinese herbal medicine ‘found’ in ancient tomb

3 Jul 2020 - 9:42PM

Historic island high and dry in China’s largest lake

24 Sep 2019 - 9:45PM

Empress Cixi’s favourite princess and what you didn’t know about her

The legendary princess, educated in France and exposed to Western cultures, served as Empress Dowager’s lady-in-waiting and interpreter

8 Jun 2018 - 5:31PMvideocam

Der Ling and Cixi, with eunuch Cui Yugui holding an umbrella for them, on Peony Hill at the Summer Palace in 1904. Der Ling looks visibly cold in the photo, but Empress Dowager was a great lover of outdoor activities regardless of the weather. Photos: Hong Kong University Press

Lessons from China's history

Reflections | From abdication to vivisection, how China’s emperors fell from grace

A look back at the many disgraces experienced by erstwhile Chinese rulers

19 Apr 2018 - 3:58PM

Looted Chinese bronze fetches double expected price in UK sale

16 Apr 2018 - 1:58PM

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One down, two to go: the hunt for China’s celebrated warlords

16 Apr 2018 - 1:48PM

Sun Quan is thought to have been buried in Meihua mountain near the east China city of Nanjing. Photo: Handout

Video | How to enjoy the Great Wall’s wild side: tips from an expert

British geographer, author and unofficial wall ambassador who lives nearby urges visitors to get fit, rise early and take in the wilderness at weekends

23 Dec 2017 - 6:36PMvideocam

Icons and Influencers

The woman who ‘ruled’ China: what you didn’t know about Empress Dowager Cixi

31 Mar 2018 - 10:48AM

Mystery over why tonnes of ancient coins were hidden in village

26 Oct 2017 - 4:57PM

The copper coins are believed to date back to the Song dynasty. Photo: jxnews.com.cn

Scientific study of China’s great flood could prove 4,000-year-old legend

12 Jun 2017 - 12:53PM

Researchers find evidence of truth behind legend, with findings that could trim centuries off founding date of first dynasty

Reflections | UFOs, aliens, robots ... ancient Chinese sci-fi novels were as fantastical as modern tales

5 Aug 2016 - 4:58PM

100,000 year old human remains found in China 'may show evidence of cannibalism'

5 Aug 2016 - 4:58PM

Environment in southwest China 'overwhelmingly' shaped by human activity for more than 1,800 years

Analysing sedimentary records from the Red River, which originates on the southeast Tibetan plateau and enters the South China Sea near Hanoi, scientists found traces of aggressive human activities, such as the massive destruction of forests, farming, and mining, from the Han Dynasty onwards.

5 Aug 2016 - 4:58PM

Vehicles transport logs across the Vietnam-China border. According to a new paper, the region's environment has been affected by ''aggressive'' human activity for more than 1,800 years. Photo: AFP

New fossil shows how soft-shelled turtles have barely changed in 120 million years

5 Aug 2016 - 4:58PM

An American soft-shelled turtle. Photo: Public domain

Motherland Myanmar: New research suggests Burma was birthplace of early Chinese people

5 Aug 2016 - 4:58PM

'World's earliest flower' found in northeast China

5 Aug 2016 - 4:58PM

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