China-general info
China is a vast country with an ancient culture. You can talk very long and detailed about China, because this country is rich in both cultural heritage and modern achievements in economy, science and technology.
But today I would like to tell you not about heavy industry or stamping press, but about some interesting facts which you may not have heard previously.
China - is a huge country with the largest population in the world. We all know about the "Chinese miracle" and know little about China itself. This is a country of contradictions, with contradictory politics and economics.
Paper money appeared in China.
The emergence of paper money is inextricably linked with the history of two technologies - the production of paper and printing. According to the archaeological data, there were materials that could be considered as paper in the III - IV centuries BC. However, the first officially recognized expertise in the manufacture of paper belongs to the Chinese. More than two thousand years BC a primitive technology of production of paper from a special kind of nettle was developed in China. Due to the ease of use, money have become a part of everyday life for some time. Europeans who came here were shocked by such decision and said that the issue of paper money - was a new way to achieve that goal, the alchemists had been searching for so many years.
In Western countries money went into circulation in late XVII century. Its distribution is associated with the formation of the capitalist system. The accelerated economic growth required a more convenient form of money circulation. And the paper notes complied with the requirements completely. During the XVIII century money became common throughout Europe (in Russia - during the reign of Catherine II in 1769) and by the end of the XIX century had begun to dominate the world.
It is interesting that white color is considered mourning in China, as in most Muslim countries. White is the color, which is associated with old age, fall, fading, i.e. completion of the cycle and going over the edge of the world. Therefore, white dress means mourning, and emphasizes the importance of objects as related to the funeral. Ketchup was invented in China.
Ketchup originally meant the sauce made of anchovies, walnuts, mushrooms and kidney beans. According to one version, the word ketchup is derived from the words of one of Chinese dialects - koechiap or ke-tsiap. In a rough translation it means the brine of salted fish or shellfish. The Great Wall of China is visible from space. The first things, that the astronaut N.A. Armstrong saw on a brilliant globe from the spacecraft "Apollo-11", were the Great Wall of China and the dam, built beside the coast of Holland.
The Great Wall is the most magnificent ancient Chinese military fortifications and one of the true wonders of the world in the history of architecture. The construction of the Great Wall dates back to the periods of Spring and Autumn and Warring, it had lasted over 200 years until the end of the Ming Dynasty. The Great Wall stretches from east to west in the north of the country and passes through steep mountains, steppes and deserts. The Great Wall is known throughout the world for its magnificence, incredible magnitude and duration of construction, it is considered to be the seventh wonder of the world. Today the Great Wall is known across the country and the world. It is visited by every guest in China. The great value of the Great Wall in the history, culture, art and architecture helps the tourists to get deeper understanding of China. We all know that the chopsticks come from China. However, you probably do not know that the Chinese are losing millions of hectares of forest every year due to the production of sticks. What a senseless consumption. So now the Chinese authorities encourage the reuse of sticks instead of throwing them out. The history of Chinese chopsticks has been for millennia.
Scientists believe that the first time they were used in China before our era. According to one version, this happened during the reign of the Shang Yin Dynasty (about 1764 - 1027 years BC). But in the historical notes of Sima Qian, written during the reign of the Han dynasty, it is noted that the Emperor Zhou used chopsticks made of ivory for nearly 4000 years ago. Thus the first Chinese sticks appeared before the Shang Yin Dynasty. Chinese chronicles indicate that in those times chopsticks were used only by the emperor and his attedants, and only in the years 700-800 AD they entered the homes of ordinary people.
There is a version that initially sticks were needed only during the preparation of food, wrapped in leaves. It was with their help, the cooks quickly and deftly carried hot stones and overturned chunks of meat, fish and vegetables. Later, the sticks were replaced with long-handled ladle, which was called "bi". Previously cooked food was taken out from the pot by spoon, then with the advent of sticks there was no more necessity in it. China, having the history of more than 3 thousand years, will always surprise you with something new!
The emergence of paper money is inextricably linked with the history of two technologies - the production of paper and printing. According to the archaeological data, there were materials that could be considered as paper in the III - IV centuries BC. However, the first officially recognized expertise in the manufacture of paper belongs to the Chinese. More than two thousand years BC a primitive technology of production of paper from a special kind of nettle was developed in China. Due to the ease of use, money have become a part of everyday life for some time. Europeans who came here were shocked by such decision and said that the issue of paper money - was a new way to achieve that goal, the alchemists had been searching for so many years.
In Western countries money went into circulation in late XVII century. Its distribution is associated with the formation of the capitalist system. The accelerated economic growth required a more convenient form of money circulation. And the paper notes complied with the requirements completely. During the XVIII century money became common throughout Europe (in Russia - during the reign of Catherine II in 1769) and by the end of the XIX century had begun to dominate the world.
It is interesting that white color is considered mourning in China, as in most Muslim countries. White is the color, which is associated with old age, fall, fading, i.e. completion of the cycle and going over the edge of the world. Therefore, white dress means mourning, and emphasizes the importance of objects as related to the funeral. Ketchup was invented in China.
Ketchup originally meant the sauce made of anchovies, walnuts, mushrooms and kidney beans. According to one version, the word ketchup is derived from the words of one of Chinese dialects - koechiap or ke-tsiap. In a rough translation it means the brine of salted fish or shellfish. The Great Wall of China is visible from space. The first things, that the astronaut N.A. Armstrong saw on a brilliant globe from the spacecraft "Apollo-11", were the Great Wall of China and the dam, built beside the coast of Holland.
The Great Wall is the most magnificent ancient Chinese military fortifications and one of the true wonders of the world in the history of architecture. The construction of the Great Wall dates back to the periods of Spring and Autumn and Warring, it had lasted over 200 years until the end of the Ming Dynasty. The Great Wall stretches from east to west in the north of the country and passes through steep mountains, steppes and deserts. The Great Wall is known throughout the world for its magnificence, incredible magnitude and duration of construction, it is considered to be the seventh wonder of the world. Today the Great Wall is known across the country and the world. It is visited by every guest in China. The great value of the Great Wall in the history, culture, art and architecture helps the tourists to get deeper understanding of China. We all know that the chopsticks come from China. However, you probably do not know that the Chinese are losing millions of hectares of forest every year due to the production of sticks. What a senseless consumption. So now the Chinese authorities encourage the reuse of sticks instead of throwing them out. The history of Chinese chopsticks has been for millennia.
Scientists believe that the first time they were used in China before our era. According to one version, this happened during the reign of the Shang Yin Dynasty (about 1764 - 1027 years BC). But in the historical notes of Sima Qian, written during the reign of the Han dynasty, it is noted that the Emperor Zhou used chopsticks made of ivory for nearly 4000 years ago. Thus the first Chinese sticks appeared before the Shang Yin Dynasty. Chinese chronicles indicate that in those times chopsticks were used only by the emperor and his attedants, and only in the years 700-800 AD they entered the homes of ordinary people.
There is a version that initially sticks were needed only during the preparation of food, wrapped in leaves. It was with their help, the cooks quickly and deftly carried hot stones and overturned chunks of meat, fish and vegetables. Later, the sticks were replaced with long-handled ladle, which was called "bi". Previously cooked food was taken out from the pot by spoon, then with the advent of sticks there was no more necessity in it. China, having the history of more than 3 thousand years, will always surprise you with something new!
