Seals existed in the pre-Qin period, usually only a few words, indicating names, official positions or institutions. Printed texts are all carved into reflexes, and there are differences between yin and yang. Before paper appeared, official documents or letters were written on bamboo slips. After they were written, they were tied with ropes, and sticky mud was placed at the ligation place to seal the knot, and the seal was covered on the mud, which was called mud sealing. Mud sealing was printing on the mud, which was a means of confidentiality at that time. After the appearance of paper, the mud seal evolved into a paper seal, which was stamped at the seams of several official papers or at the sealing of official paper bags. According to records, during the Northern Qi Dynasty (55~577 AD), someone made a large seal for stamping official documents, much like a small engraving.
1. Bronze seal in the Warring States Period (475- 221 BC).
2. Ge Hong (AD 284-363), a famous alchemist in the Jin Dynasty, mentioned in his book Bao Puzi that Taoism had used a four-inch square (13.5×13.5) wooden seal with 12 words at that time. This is already a small block.
3. In order to make Buddhist scriptures more vivid, Buddhists often print Buddha statues on the frontispiece of Buddhist scriptures, which is much more convenient than hand-painting.
4. rubbings on steles are very enlightening to the invention of block printing technology. The invention of stone carving has a long history. Ten stone drums were discovered in Fengxiang, Shaanxi Province in the early Tang Dynasty. They were the stone carvings of Qin in the Spring and Autumn Period of the 8th century BC. Qin Shihuang went on patrol and carved stones in important places seven times. After the Eastern Han Dynasty, stone tablets prevailed. In the fourth year of Emperor Ling of the Han Dynasty (AD 175), Cai Yong suggested that the imperial court set up seven Confucian classic stone tablets in front of the Imperial College, including The Book of Songs, Shangshu, Zhouyi, Book of Rites, Chunqiu, Biography of the Ram and The Analects of Confucius, with 29, words, each with a height of 175. It took 8 years and was all carved. Become a classic of scholars at that time. Many people compete to copy. Later, especially in the Wei, Jin and Six Dynasties, some people took advantage of lax or unattended care to print the scriptures on paper for their own use or sale. As a result, it was widely circulated.
5. Rubbing is one of the important conditions for the emergence of printing technology. The ancients found that a slightly moist piece of paper was covered on the stone tablet, and the paper was struck lightly with a soft mallet, so that the paper fell into the concave part of the stone tablet. After the paper was dry, it was wrapped with cotton, dipped in ink, and tapped gently on the paper, leaving black and white characters exactly like the stone tablet on the paper. This method is simpler and more reliable than manual copying. So rubbing appeared.
6. Printing and dyeing technology also has a great enlightenment to block printing. Printing and dyeing is to carve patterns on wooden boards and print them on cloth with dyes. There are two kinds of printing plates in China: embossed plate and hollow plate. In 1972, two pieces of printed yarn unearthed from Mawangdui No.1 Han Tomb (around 165 BC) in Changsha, Hunan Province were printed with embossed plates. This technology may be earlier than the Qin and Han Dynasties, but can be traced back to the Warring States Period. After the invention of paper, this technology may be used in printing, as long as the cloth is changed into paper, the dye is changed into ink, and the printed things become block prints. In the stone chambers of Dunhuang, there are Buddha statues printed with convex plates and hollowed-out plates in the Tang Dynasty.
seal, rubbing, printing and dyeing are mutually inspired and integrated, and with the experience and wisdom of our people, block printing technology came into being.
2. Papermaking
In the early Han Dynasty, the political West Han Dynasty was stable, the ideology and culture were very active, and the demand for communication tools was strong, so paper came into being as a new writing material. Xu Shen wrote Shuo Wen Jie Zi, which was written in 1 AD. Talking about the origin of "paper". He said: "The paper comes from the side of the department, that is, from the side of the silk". This sentence means that the paper at that time was mainly made of spun silk, which is completely different from the paper in the present sense. Xu Shen thinks that paper is a thin sheet of silk wadding left on the bed after being hit in water. This kind of sheet may be the most primitive "paper", and some people call this kind of "paper" "HeTi". This may be a prelude to the invention of paper. The record of this kind of "paper" can be traced back to the first year of Yuan Yan, the emperor of the Western Han Dynasty (12 BC). In The Biography of Empress Zhao in Han Dynasty, it was recorded that Cao Wei, the princess of Emperor Cheng, was able to have a prince and was persecuted by the sisters of Empress Zhao Feiyan. The poison they gave Cao Weineng was wrapped in "Heti" paper, which read: "Tell Wei Neng to try to drink this medicine! Can't re-enter, you know it! " . It is speculated that paper may have something to do with silk.
Since ancient times, people in China have known how to raise silkworms and reeling silk. During the Qin and Han Dynasties, the handicraft industry with cocoon as silk floss was very popular. This method of treating secondary cocoons is called flossing, and the basic points of operation include repeatedly beating to mash silkworm clothing. This technology later developed into beating in papermaking. In addition, in ancient China, lime water or plant ash water was often used to degum silk and hemp, which also gave enlightenment to degumming plant fibers in papermaking. Paper was developed with the help of these technologies.
According to the archaeological findings so far, papermaking was invented not later than the early Western Han Dynasty. The earliest unearthed ancient paper in the Western Han Dynasty was discovered in the ancient beacon pavilion in Luobnuoer, Xinjiang in 1933, not later than 49 BC.
ancient paper unearthed in Baqiao, Xi 'an City, Shaanxi Province in May p>1957 was identified as hemp paper of the Western Han Dynasty by scientific analysis, and its age was not later than 118 BC. In 1973, two pieces of hemp paper were found in Shuijinguan, Juyan, Gansu, not later than 52 BC. They were dark yellow and rough in texture.
In p>1978, three pieces of hemp paper were unearthed in Zhongyan Village, Fufeng, Shaanxi Province during the Xuandi period of the Western Han Dynasty (73-49 BC). In 1979, five pieces of eight pieces of hemp paper from the Western Han Dynasty were unearthed in Maquanwan, Dunhuang County, Gansu Province. In 1986, the paper map fragments unearthed in Fangmatan, Tianshui, Gansu Province during the period of Emperor Wendi of the Western Han Dynasty (179-141 BC) showed that the paper at that time could be used for writing and drawing. Judging from the quality of the paper unearthed in the Western Han Dynasty, the papermaking technology in the early years of the Western Han Dynasty was basically mature.
There are few documents about papermaking technology in Han Dynasty in history, so it is difficult to understand its complete and detailed technological process. Although future generations have speculated, it can only be used as a reference. Generally speaking, there are many links in papermaking technology, so there must be a process of development and evolution, which is by no means the work of one person. It is the crystallization of the long-term experience and wisdom of the working people in our country.
3. Compass
The ancestor of the compass appeared in the Warring States Period. It is made of natural magnets. It looks like a spoon with a round bottom, which can be placed on a smooth "site" and kept in balance, and can rotate freely. When it is at rest, the handle of the spoon will point to the south. The ancients called it "Sina", and in the book "Han Feizi" at that time, there was: "Wang Li Sina took the time first." "End up in the morning and evening" means to be square and orient. The application of Sina is recorded in Guiguzi, and Zheng people took Sina with them when they picked jade to ensure that they didn't get lost.
In the Spring and Autumn Period, people have been able to grind nephrite and jadeite with hardness of 5-7 degrees into various shapes, so they can also make natural magnets with hardness of only 5.5-6.5 degrees into Sina. In the Eastern Han Dynasty, Wang Chong made a clear record of the shape and usage of Sina in his book Lun Heng. SiNa is made of a whole piece of natural magnet after pondering, and the handle of the spoon is extremely guided, so that the center of gravity of the whole spoon falls right in the middle of the bottom of the spoon, and the spoon is placed in a smooth site, which is surrounded by a four-dimensional stem and branches, and synthesized in 24 directions. This design was completed after long-term research after the ancients carefully observed many phenomena related to magnetism in nature and accumulated a lot of knowledge and experience. The appearance of Sina is the practical application of people's understanding of the polarity of magnet fingers. However, Sina also has many defects. Natural magnets are not easy to find, and it is easy to lose magnetism due to shock and heat during processing. Therefore, Sina's magnetism is relatively weak, and its contact with the site should be very smooth, otherwise it will be difficult to rotate because of the excessive friction resistance, and the expected guiding effect cannot be achieved. Moreover, Sina has a certain volume and weight, which is inconvenient to carry, which may be the main reason why Sina has not been widely used for a long time.
Sina consists of a bronze disk and a magnetic spoon made of natural magnets. The bronze disk is engraved with 24 directions, and the magnetic spoon is placed on the central circular surface of the disk. When it is at rest, the tail of the spoon points to the south.
4. Gunpowder
The first book recorded the formula of gunpowder in China was written in the eighth and ninth centuries. It is said in the book that "the saltpeter is mixed with sulfur and realgar, and it is burned densely", and the phenomenon of "burning up, burning hands and faces and burning the house" will occur. The "secret" here should be honey. Honey can be turned into charcoal when heated. Sulfur, saltpeter and carbon are mixed, which is the formula of gunpowder.
the invention of gunpowder is the result of people's long-term alchemy and pharmaceutical practice, which has a history of more than 1 years.
at the end of the Tang dynasty, gunpowder was used in the military. In the first year of God Blessing in Tang Zhaozong (94), Yang Xingmi's army besieged Yuzhang, and the Ministry of Zheng (with his troops, Fei Huo was fired, and the dragon and the shaman were burned, leading the strong men to land in the city first, and the quilt was anxious) < Nine Kingdoms. Zheng Chuan > . The (Fei Huo) mentioned here means (artillery) and (rocket). (artillery) is to make the powder into a ring, ignite the messenger wire and throw it out with a trebuchet; (rocket) is to tie the powder ball under the arrow, ignite the messenger wire and shoot it with a bow. In the Song Dynasty, wars continued one after another, which accelerated the development of gunpowder weapons. The northern Wei government established a gunpowder workshop, and successively manufactured gunpowder arrows, artillery and other weapons with mainly burning performance, and other weapons with strong explosiveness (thunderbolt) and (thunderbolt). In 1259, Nan Wei built a gun with giant bamboo as the barrel and gunpowder inside. In the Yuan Dynasty, the bronze casting fire system appeared again, which was called (General Copper). These weapons are all driven by the explosion of gunpowder, which has shown unprecedented power in the war. The picture below shows the Nanwei musket and the Beiwei gunpowder arrow.
in the 12th and 13th centuries, gunpowder was first introduced to Arab countries, and then spread to Greece, Europe and even all over the world. It has promoted the civilization and progress of human society and the development of economy, science and culture. The use of gunpowder and firearms was not recorded in the United States and France until the mid-14th century.
[ Edit this paragraph ]1. Originated from alchemy
The origin of alchemy is very early, and it has been recorded in the Warring States Policy that alchemists offered immortal medicine to King Jing. Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty also dreamed of "long life and long sight", and asked the people for pills, recruited alchemists, and personally made an alchemist. Since then, alchemy has become a trend and has become popular. An alchemist appeared in all previous dynasties, which is the so-called alchemist. The purpose of an alchemist is to find the medicine of immortality, which is impossible to achieve. Alchemy has been popular for more than 1 years, and finally nothing has been achieved. However, some specific methods used in alchemy still have some merits, which show the original form of chemistry.
An important method in alchemy is "fire alchemy". It is directly related to the invention of gunpowder. The so-called "fire alchemy" is a kind of anhydrous heating method. Ge Hong in Jin Dynasty recorded the fire method in "Bao Puzi", which generally includes: calcination (long-term high-temperature heating), smelting (heating of dry substances), moxibustion (local baking), melting (melting), pumping (distillation), flying (also called rising, that is, sublimation), and so on. These methods are the most basic chemical methods, which is also the basis for the invention of alchemy, a foolish profession. The piety of the alchemist and the frustration of looking for the elixir of life make the alchemist have to experiment repeatedly and find new methods. This created conditions for the invention of gunpowder. Before the invention of gunpowder, alchemy had obtained some artificial chemicals, such as mercury sulfide. This may be one of the earliest products made by chemical synthesis.
An alchemist caught fire, which inspired people to know and invent gunpowder.
[ Edit this paragraph ]2. Invention of gunpowder
Although alchemists have mastered certain chemical methods, their direction is to seek the medicine of immortality, so the invention of gunpowder has certain contingency.
alchemists often "lie down" by burning sulfur, arsenic and other toxic epigraphy drugs before using them, and "lie down" means falling down. The procedure of losing or reducing toxicity is called "subduing fire". Sun Simiao, a famous doctor and alchemist in the early Tang Dynasty, wrote in the "Sulphur Method in Dan Jing" that sulfur and saltpetre were ground into powder and put in a silver pot or a sand jar. Dig a pit, put a pot in the pit and level it, and fill it with soil on all sides. Light three honey locust that have not been eaten by insects one by one, then put them into a pot and set off fireworks with sulfur and saltpeter. When the fireworks can't be burned, stir-fry the charcoal until one third of the charcoal is eliminated, then anneal, and take the mixture before it cools down, which will subdue the fire.
In the mid-Tang Dynasty, a man named Qing Xuzi put forward a recipe for suppressing fire in the method of "suppressing fire with alum": "Sulfur is 22 liang, nitrate is 22 liang, and Aristolochia San Qian is half. Right is the end, mix well. Dig a pit, put medicine in the pot and level with the ground. Put a piece of cooked fire, the marble is big, put it down inside, and the smoke will gradually rise. " He used Aristolochia instead of Gleditsia sinensis in Sun Simiao's prescription. These two substances play a burning role instead of carbon.
all the prescriptions for latent fire contain carbon, and saltpeter should be added to latent sulfur, and sulfur should be added to latent saltpeter. This shows that the alchemist intends to make the drugs burn to get rid of their fierce poison.
Although alchemists know that the mixed ignition of sulfur, nitrate and carbon will have a fierce reaction, and take measures to control the reaction speed, accidents of fire in the Dan room caused by drugs falling over fire often occur. There is a story in Tai Ping Guang Ji, which tells that in the early years of Sui Dynasty, a man named Du Chunzi visited an old man who was an alchemist. Lived there that night. Du Chunzi woke up in the middle of the night and saw "purple smoke passing through the house" in the blast furnace, and the house suddenly burned. This may be caused by an alchemist's negligence in preparing flammable drugs. There is also an alchemy book called "A Brief Introduction to the True Yuan Miao Dao", which also talks about the fire in alchemy with sulfur, saltpeter, realgar and honey, which burned people's faces and hands, went straight to the roof and burned the house. The book warns alchemists to prevent such accidents. This shows that the alchemists in the Tang Dynasty have mastered a very important experience, that is, sulfur, nitrate and carbon can form a highly flammable medicine, which is called "fire medicine", that is, gunpowder. Because of the invention of gunpowder, it was once regarded as a medicine in the process of self-made Dan dispensing. In Compendium of Materia Medica, it is mentioned that gunpowder can cure sores, tinea, insects, damp and plague.
gunpowder can't solve the problem of immortality, and it is easy to catch fire. The alchemists are not interested in it. The formula of gunpowder was transferred from an alchemist to a strategist and became one of the gunpowder in four great inventions of ancient china.
[ edit this paragraph ]3. Application of gunpowder
Gunpowder in the Tang Dynasty
Before the invention of gunpowder, fire attack was a common means of attack by military strategists. At that time, a weapon called rocket was used in fire attack. It tied some flammable substances such as grease, rosin and sulfur to an arrow, lit it and shot it out with a bow to burn the enemy's position. If gunpowder is used instead of ordinary flammable materials, the effect will be much better. Before the invention of gunpowder, a stone thrower was often used to throw stones and grease fireballs to destroy the enemy. After the invention of gunpowder, a stone thrower was used to throw gunpowder packets instead of stones and grease fireballs. According to Lu Zhen's Records of Nine Kingdoms in Song Dynasty, in Tang Aidi (1th century), Zheng Wangfan led an army to attack Yuzhang (now Nanchang, Jiangxi) and "started Fei Huo" to burn the Dragon Shaman in the city. This may be the earliest record of siege with gunpowder.
gunpowder in the song dynasty
gunpowder weapons developed rapidly in the song dynasty. According to the Records of the History of the Song Dynasty, in 97 AD, the Ministry of War ordered Feng Jisheng to enter the rocket method, which was to tie a powder cartridge at the front end of the arrow shaft.