Han: Did you mean...?

Jade (nephrite) was regarded as the most precious stone in ancient China, and it symbolised purity and moral integrity. Prized for its durability and magical qualities, the stone was laboriously carved and polished into all manner of objects...

With zinging arrows, powerful crossbow bolts, stabbing swords, and swinging axes all a staple feature of the Chinese battlefield, it is not surprising that soldiers sought to protect themselves as best they could with armour and shields...

While ancient Chinese warfare was often characterised by large armies in pitched battles, siege warfare and the sacking of cities were also regular features. Huge earth walls with towers and encircling ditches or moats became the normal strategy...

The network popularly known as the Silk Road refers not to a single route but to a shifting constellation of overland and maritime pathways that connected East and West across more than a millennium. Long before the term was coined in the...

The history of Chinese imperial rule traditionally begins with the semi-legendary Xia dynasty (traditionally dated c. 2070–1600 BCE) and unfolds through a succession of ruling houses that shaped one of the world’s most continuous state traditions...

Map showing the political division in the Eastern hemisphere in 1 CE. The Han dynasty was almost at its peak in terms of geographical expansion.

A map showing the principal buildings and layout of the later Han capital Luoyang, China, c.23 CE.

Painted portrait of Sima Qian (c. 145-86 BCE). Although he is commonly referred to as a Chinese historian, he was actually the Grand Astrologer at the court of Emperor Wu of Han (r. 141 and 87 BCE).

A servant statue, Western Han Period (206 BCE – 9 CE). Cernuschi Museum, Paris, France.

Earthenware figurine depicting the Queen Mother of the West. c. 2nd century CE, Eastern Han Dynasty. Cat # 2000.106.1740. From the Joey and Toby Tanenbaum Gallery of China at the Royal Ontario Museum.