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| | | | | The Earth and Its Peoples: A Global History, Second Edition
Richard W. Bulliet, Pamela Kyle Crossley, Daniel R. Headrick, Steven W. Hirsch, Lyman L. Johnson, David Northrup
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| | History WIRED
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Chapter 6: An Age of Empires: Rome
and Han China, 753 B.C.E.-330
C.E.
Maps
The Roman
Empire, 12
C.E.
The Roman
Empire, 150
C.E.
Roman
Empire,
180 C.E.
Maps
of the Roman
Empire
The
Roman
Empire: Maps
East
Asia
Map
Qin and
Its
Conquest
Qin
Dynasty
Map
The
Han
Empire
The
Han
Dynasty, 206 B.C.E-220 C.E.
Han Empire,
100
C.E.
Han
Imperial
China
Images
Maecenas:
Images
of Ancient Greece and Rome
A comprehensive site that
offers
1100 images of Roman ruins throughout the
empire.
Art
in
College Teaching: Roman Art and Architecture
This gallery has
forty
images from various periods in Roman
history.
Virtual
Tour
of Rome
An interactive site that tours the ruins of the
city
of Rome. Click the question mark sign for description of
the ruins.
To find images of the Coliseum, click "Browse the
Tour Index" and then scroll
down the alphabetical index until you
arrive at "Coliseum."
Pictorial
Tour of
Rome
Another virtual tour of ruins of the city of
Rome.
Pictorial
Tour
of the Empire
A virtual tour of ruins throughout the Roman
Empire.
Rome
This
comprehensive site offers over 100 images of Roman ruins from
the
city of Rome and many provinces. Scroll down to find four
good
images of the famous Coliseum of Rome.
Roman
Art and
Architecture
Another comprehensive site of images from
Rome
and its provinces.
OSSHE
Historical
and Cultural Atlas Resource
Included in this site are
many
images of urban Rome and the empire's infrastructure such as
roads and
aqueducts.
Internet
East Asian Sourcebook: Imperial China
Scroll
down to Qin and Han Dynasty
for several images from these
periods.
Ancient
Civilization
seen through Computer Graphics: Tomb of Shih Huang Ti
This
unique site has images and streaming video of computer
generated
depictions of the tomb of China's first emperor and founder
of the Qin
Dynasty.
This
site has
several small images of the artifacts from Shi Huangdi's
tomb.
Marc
Richards Fine Art
Gallery: The Han Dynasty
This gallery includes images
of Han
artists' depictions of animals, jars and vessels, and
human
figures.
Artifacts
from Imperial
Tombs of China
Along with images from other periods,
this site
contains several images of artifacts from Han Dynasty era
imperial
tombs.
The
Art
of Ancient China
This site includes several images from the
Qin
and Han Dynasties.
Eternal
China
Click on Qin and Han Objects to view several artifacts
from
these time periods.
The
Great
Wall
This site offers numerous images from the Great Wall
of
China. Note: These images depict the version of the wall
built during
the fourteenth and fifteeth centuries
C.E.
Activity One:
This chapter explores the development
of two
contemporary empires - Rome and Han China - between 753 B.C.E.
and
330 C.E. on opposite sides of the Eurasian continent. See
Trade
Routes
and Great Empires of the First Century. Although these
empires
had no real contact with each other, in a broad perspective,
they had much
in common. First and foremost, they were able to
promote order and
stability for several centuries in the lands they
controlled. In
the process, they spread their culture far from
their initial homeland.
One manner in which they pursued order
and stability was through military
strategy. Both Rome and Han
China created empires
vast in scope. Study the Maps at Map
of
the Roman Empire and Han
Empire, 100
C.E. Compare and contrast the geographical scope
of each
empire. What did they have in common? What was
different?
Consider the shape of the empires and geographical
features such as deserts,
oceans, etc. How ethnically diverse
was each empire?
To analyze how each empire secured its
borders, go to Virtually
a
Tour of a Desert Fort and The
Great
Wall. Also study the images at Hadrian's
Wall
and the Via
Appia.
Using these sources, describe how the Romans and Han Chinese
promoted
military security. From whom were they protecting
themselves?
Activity Two:
In addition to military concerns,
the Romans
and Han Chinese also shared many of the same strategies in
promoting
the authority of the central government. Both
political systems gave
broad powers to emperors. Each system
had many methods of promoting
the emperors' authority. For
example, go to The
Deeds of the
Divine Augustus. Also analyze the images at
Emperor
Augustus
(pay particular attention to "Part 3: The Statue of Augustus
at Prima
Porta," and remember that you can click on the photos for an
enlarged
view) and Liu
Bang:
Founder of the Han Dynasty. According to these sources,
how
did each empire promote the authority of the emperor? What
theoretical
underpinnings upheld his power? What forms of
propaganda did they
use to promote the emperor's powers? What
was the emperor expected
to do for the empire? Why were people
supposed to submit to his
authority? Through the political
office of the emperor, the Romans
and Han Chinese were able to
centralize the power of their governments.
Read the essays
at
The
Emperor
Antoninus Pius 138-161 and The
Emperor
Wu-ti 140-87 B.C.. List examples of how each
government
gained more power over the territories they controlled
during the reigns
of these emperors. For example, both rulers
made efforts to reform
their bureaucracies. How did these
efforts help to consolidate their
governments' power? After
reviewing the sites in this activity and
those in Activity One,
explain the similarities between the Han Chinese and
Roman
governments' efforts to promote stability and order. Why
do you think
there are so many broad similarities in their governing
styles and
strategies?
Activity Three:
At the height
of their power, both
empires expanded their knowledge of the world around
them. Go
to The
Periplus
of the Erythraean Sea: Travel and Trade in the Indian Ocean by
a
Merchant of the First Century. This site contains a primary
source from
a Roman sailor's experiences traveling down the east
coast of Africa and
around the Arabian peninsula. Also read the
text and study the
images at Han Emperor
Wu-ti's
Interest in Central Asia and Chang Chien's Expeditions.
Use
the Maps above to familiarize yourself with the areas these sites
describe.
The following are especially useful: East
Asia
Map, The
Han
Empire, and The
Roman Empire, 150
C.E. Why were the Romans
and the Han
Chinese intrigued by the areas described in these sources?
What
were their attitudes toward the people living there? How
did
their vast strength allow for greater contact with areas beyond
their
borders? What implications do you believe this contact
had for world
history? Hint: See Trade
Routes and
Great Empires of the First Century.
This legacy will be explored further in
Chapter 8 "Networks of Communication
and Exchange, 300 B.C.E.-1100
C.E."
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