History Topic of
the Month
Four Great Inventions
of China
Many of the greatest inventions in human history were first
made in China. By the 13th century, China was an innovative
and exciting place to live. Travellers from Europe discovered
things there that were beyond imagination in Europe. When
the explorer Marco Polo arrived in China, he encountered a
Contributer: © Patrick Guenette / 123rf
country vastly different from his home of Venice.
Cai Lun (AD c.57 – 121), was a Chinese
In his book, The Travels of Marco Polo, Polo describes cities
courtier official. He is believed to
with broad, straight and clean streets (very different from his be the inventor of paper and the
home in Venice) where even the poorest people could wash papermaking process, discovering
in great bath houses at least three time a week (again very techniques that created paper as we
different from hygiene in Europe). would recognise it today.
China celebrates four particular innovations as “the Four Great Inventions” — they were
even featured as a part of the opening ceremony for the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games.
So, what were these four great inventions?
Writing it all down: Paper
The first of the great inventions was something we all use almost every day: paper. Many
different materials had been used for writing things down, like bamboo, wood (both hard
to store and write on) or silk and cloth (much more expensive). Types of paper have been
found in archaeological records dating back thousands of years, but it was very difficult to
make. It wasn’t until AD c.105 that a quick and easy way of making paper was invented.
The inventor of this new technique was a
man called Cai Lun (AD c.57-121). He was
an official at the Emperor’s court and an
advisor to several Emperors. Cai invented
a new way of creating the pulp that forms
paper. He took materials like bamboo,
mulberry tree bark, plant waste and rags.
These were mixed together, beaten, then
mixed with water, and then poured over a
flat woven cloth to let the water drain out.
When the mixture dried out only the
fibers remained forming a lightweight
Contributor: © CPA Media Pte Ltd / Alamy Stock Photo paper. This was a cheap, easy method of
creating large amounts of paper.
This drawing shows the process of creating paper
from mixing the materials to form a pulp to forming 1
the pulp into sheets of paper using frames.
History Topic of the Month:
Four great inventions of China
Cai was inspired by watching how wasps make their nests. The invention
helped make Cai one of the most powerful people at court. Over 500 years
later Cai Lun was named as the national God of papermaking. Cai Lun is also
the only “name” that history has recorded in connection with any of the four
great inventions.
As well as being the main way of keeping records in China, paper was also
used for a range of purposes, from tea bags, toilet paper, packing and, by the
11th century, as money.
Working out where we are going: the Compass
The second great invention was the compass. Navigation was very difficult in the medieval
world. Maps were unreliable and large parts of the world were unknown. The only real
points of reference were the stars and landmarks, like mountains. It was often very hard
to know exactly where you were or which direction you were travelling in. The compass
helped to change all of that, by telling people exactly which direction was north.
In Han Dynasty China (between the 2nd century BC and 1st century AD) lodestone
compasses used magnetic pieces of rock. These were shaped like spoons and placed
on a wooden plate with the directions marked on it. The handle of the spoon always
pointed south – these early compasses were called “south-governors”. These compasses
were also used for spiritual guidance, to help people make decisions about their lives
by pointing them ‘the right way’.
By 1088, the famous courtier and
scholar, Shen Kuo, wrote about
the first magnetic needle compass,
which was being used to help people
navigate. This used a lodestone
sealed in wax within a box frame,
with a needle at the top. As the
lodestone moved, the needle always
pointed towards north. This was the
first recorded use of a navigation
compass in world history.
Contributor: © CPA Media Pte Ltd / Alamy Stock Photo
Shen Kuo (AD c.1031-1095), was a famous courtier
and scholar. It is thanks to his writings about the
great inventions that we know as much as we do
about how these discoveries were made.
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History Topic of the Month:
Four great inventions of China
Spreading the word: Printing (11th century)
The earliest known printed book, published at some time around AD 868,
was the Diamond Sutra, a book of Buddhist philosophy originally from India.
The book was a Chinese translation, and it existed because the Chinese had
invented the woodblock printing press. This method of printing involved carving
an image or a block of text onto a block of wood. These were then dipped in
ink and printed onto a surface, like paper or fabric. A whole page of a book –
with any pictures – would be carved onto a single block.
Contributer: © Classic Image / Alamy Stock Photo
This copy of the Chinese version of Diamond Sutra, found among the Dunhuang
manuscripts in the early 20th century by Aurel Stein, was dated back to May 11,
868 and is the earliest complete printed book.
Evidence of woodblock printing on
fabric has been found dating back to Shen Kuo described how moveable
AD 220. But technology in China kept type printing worked:
moving on! In c.1088 Shen Kuo wrote “When [Bi Sheng] wished to print, he
about a tradesman called Bi Sheng (AD took an iron frame and set it on the
c.990-1051)who invented what is called iron plate. In this he placed the types,
“movable type printing”. This method set close together. When the frame was
used small ceramic blocks (called types), full, the whole made one solid block
each containing a single letter or symbol. of type... If one were to print only two
They are combined together to make an or three copies, this method would be
entire page of text which is then printed neither simple nor easy. But for printing
onto paper. hundreds or thousands of copies, it was
marvellously quick.“
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History Topic of the Month:
Four great inventions of China
The quickness was the key! Before Bi Sheng, each page of a book still
needed to be specially created on wood blocks. This meant it took a long
time to create. But Bi Sheng’s technique made printing huge numbers of
books quicker and cheaper. Government officials quickly started using this
technique to print their own documents.
Moveable type only arrived in Europe in the 1440s, when Johannes
Gutenberg used it to start printing the Bible – all bibles before then were
hand made. Like the Chinese, Gutenberg was able to use moveable type to
print hundreds of bibles in far less time than it took to make one by hand.
Finishing with a bang: Gunpowder
The Chinese never stopped challenging themselves to invent
things that would make their lives easier. That’s what pushed Alchemy is a sort of
a team of 9th century Chinese alchemists to try and find a Medieval chemistry,
chemical that would grant eternal life. They didn’t find that: where alchemists
but instead discovered a fast-burning powder that had huge tried to change
explosive power: gunpowder! objects from one
The Zhenyuan Miaodao Yauloe was a 10th century alchemy thing to another
book that made the first ever reference to gunpowder: “Some – most famously
have heated together sulfur, realgar and saltpeter with honey; ordinary metals
smoke and flames result, so that their hands and faces have into gold.
been burnt, and even the whole house where they were
working burned down.”
Contributer: © Classic Image / Alamy Stock Photo
In this artwork the artist has taken artistic license by picturing
the Chinese Emperor Yeo Wang (Zhou Dynasty) using 4
gunpowder to make loud noises to entertain his guests.
History Topic of the Month:
Four great inventions of China
By 1044 there were several formulas for creating gunpowder in China. It
was quickly worked out that it could be used as a weapon. At first it was
used to help light fire arrows. But soon – as the Chinese mastered working
with iron and steel – it was used in cannons. Gunpowder did not start to
appear in Europe for almost another two hundred years.
The invention of gunpowder also led to the invention of fireworks, with
gunpowder being one of their main components. In traditional Chinese
culture it was believed that explosive sounds of the fireworks would scare
away evil spirits. Fireworks are widely used around the world today for
celebratory events such as Chinese New Year.
In the 13th century, Chinese technology and discoveries were so far ahead
of Europe in so many areas, and you can see why Marco Polo was so
amazed when he arrived in China. The Chinese not only pioneered these
four inventions that changed the course of human history, but they also
made countless innovations in everything from hygiene to metal working.
We owe many of the things that we would consider normal and every day
to Chinese inventors – and although many of their names have been lost,
their legacy will last forever.
Discussion points
• Why do you think Marco Polo was amazed by
the Chinese inventions he discovered when he
travelled to China in the 13th century?
• Which of these Chinese inventions do you think
has had the biggest impact on society today?
• Can you find 5 items that are made from paper
and paper by-products today? You might be
surprised by your findings!
• Why do you think the invention of the compass
was so important? About the author
• Do you know how to use a compass? Why do
you think it is useful to be able to use one? Alistair Nunn, Pearson’s
Senior Product Manager
• What do you consider to be the four greatest
inventions of the 20th century (1 January 1901 –
for Humanities Teaching
and Learning resources has
31 December 2000)? a degree in History from
• What date does Chinese New Year fall in 2021?
What animal is symbol of the 2021 Chinese
Cambridge. He created this
worksheet using various
zodiac? What else can you find out about Chinese sources including Pearson’s
New Year? Key Stage 3 textbook and
the websites included in
our reading list.
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History Topic of the Month:
Four great inventions of China
Reading list
Books
The Story of China by Michael Wood, September 2020
Marco Polo: From Venice to Xanadu by Laurence Bergreen,
March 2009
A Short History of China by Gordon Kerr, January 2013
The Travels of Marco Polo by Marco Polo, (Everyman’s
Library Classics & Contemporary Classics) Hardcover –
Illustrated, 21 Oct. 2008
Articles and Videos
Four Great Inventions of Ancient China
China Highlights
Four great inventions
The Four Great Inventions of Ancient China
China Culture
Live Science
YouTube Video – The deadly irony of gunpowder
PEUK B0003b • Version 1.0 • Feb 2021 •. DCL1: Public
PEUK A2422 Version 1.0 • Oct 2020 • DCL1: Public
