"Hey, Grandpa. What are these toy soldiers?"
Laurie was looking through an archaeology book in Grandpa's study.
"Those aren't toys, Laurie," Grandpa said, looking at the picture.
"Those are life-size clay soldiers!
And they're on duty for eternity, guarding the tomb of the first emperor of one of the oldest civilizations in the world—China!
Take a look at the next photo."
Laurie turned the page and saw an archaeologist carefully dusting the top of one clay soldier's head.
The archaeologist and the statue were nearly the same size!
"They are big!" she exclaimed. "And there are so many of them!
Who was this emperor? He must have been really important to have all these soldiers made just for him."
"Well, as emperor, you can pretty much get whatever you want.
But, yes, he was important. Known as Qin Shihuangdi, he was the first emperor of China and the emperor of the Qin dynasty,
which lasted from 221 BC to 207 BC.
In fact, the romanized name ‘China’ is believed to come from the Qin dynasty.
Chinese civilization had been around since about 1600 BC, but Shihuangdi was the first ruler to unite the land into an empire ruled by one government.
He was a cruel leader, but he did a lot for China.
He ordered that the same measuring, writing, and money systems be used throughout the empire, which helped trade.
He also organized the building of many roads, canals, and the longest structure ever built—the Great Wall of China."
"How was he cruel?" Laurie asked.
"Building these enormous projects, especially the Great Wall, required a lot of hard work.
Shihuangdi forced his people to work for him.
They often worked long hours on difficult jobs.
Many actually died during the building of the Great Wall.
He also believed that in order to rule a large empire, a ruler must make strict laws.
One law punished scholars who thought or wrote about things the emperor believed were harmful or not useful to his empire.
These included literature, philosophy, and of course criticism of his rule.
He also famously burned all history books because he thought they might make people question his authority. Can you believe it?"
"Wow. Without history books how would we learn about the past?" Laurie asked.
"Well, written history helps, but there are other ways of discovering the past.
Archaeology, for example! Luckily for Chinese historians, Shihuangdi's style of rule didn't last long.
Soon after his death in 210 BC, his empire collapsed and the Han dynasty began.
Han rulers looked to China's past for ideas about the future.
They returned to the ideas of Confucius.
He was an ancient scholar who believed that rulers should lead by good example only—
not by forcing people to obey strict laws—and that people should respect their elders.
His philosophy later spread throughout Asia, and his influence on Asian culture and society can still be seen today.
Unlike the first emperor, Han rulers prized scholars.
In fact, during the Han dynasty, a system was created to make sure that only the best scholars would receive government jobs.
Anyone who wanted to work for the government had to take an extremely difficult test.
China had the first government full of scholars!
And nearly two thousand years later, this practice of making government employees pass tests was adopted by American and European governments too.
The Han rulers continued to worry about foreign invaders, however,
so they kept building Shihuangdi's Great Wall and created more roads for soldiers to travel on.
With improved roads, trade continued to grow.
The famous Silk Road, one of the greatest international trading routes in history, developed during the Han dynasty.
Goods such as silk, tea, pottery, and spices traveled out of China to India, the Middle East, Russia, and Europe along that route.
The exchange of ideas and culture between the East and the West also began along the Silk Road."
"Was the road made out of silk?" Laurie asked.
Grandpa chuckled. "No, but a lot of silk traveled along it.
Silk, you see, was invented by the Chinese.
Evidence shows they were making it as early as 1300 BC, but no one outside of China knew about it until centuries later.
Once people of other countries touched the beautiful fabric, they loved it and wanted it for themselves.
But the Chinese were determined to keep their silk-making process a secret.
If foreigners wanted silk, they'd have to pay or trade.
So silk was carried out of China along the Silk Road.
Actually many things that were invented in ancient China would later travel to the West.
There's paper, for one. And the wheelbarrow, the compass, and the first machine to detect earthquakes!
The Han dynasty valued knowledge and learning, and they encouraged scientists to study and develop new things.
They also valued the arts. The Han dynasty is known for its beautiful and unique pottery, poetry, and sculpture.
Chinese civilization really flourished during this period.
The dynasty lasted longer than any other—about four hundred years—
and the Chinese consider it so important that even today they call themselves people of the Han."
"Laurie?" Mom suddenly called. "Have you seen my red silk blouse?
I want to wear it when I go out tonight."
"You mean your Chinese red silk blouse?" Laurie shouted back.
"No, I don't have a Chinese blouse, Laurie."
Now Mom's voice was coming from outside the door.
"What are you guys talking about in there anyway?"
"Oh, all kinds of things! Silk, clay soldiers, a great wall!" Laurie answered.
She turned to Grandpa and handed him back his book.
"I'd better go help Mom find her blouse. Thanks again, Grandpa.
See you in another place at another time!"