ancient chinese invention essay

New World Encyclopedia writers and editors rewrote and completed the Wikipedia article in accordance with New World Encyclopedia standards . This article abides by terms of the Creative Commons CC-by-sa 3.0 License (CC-by-sa), which may be used and disseminated with proper attribution. Credit is due under the terms of this license that can reference both the New World Encyclopedia contributors and the selfless volunteer contributors of the Wikimedia Foundation. To cite this article click here for a list of acceptable citing formats.The history of earlier contributions by wikipedians is accessible to researchers here:

• History of science and technology in China   history

The history of this article since it was imported to New World Encyclopedia :

• History of "History of science and technology in China"

Note: Some restrictions may apply to use of individual images which are separately licensed.

• Pages using ISBN magic links

The Four Great Inventions of Ancient China

'The Four Great Inventions of Ancient China' refers to paper, gunpowder, printing, and the compass. These four great inventions greatly promoted the development of China's economy, politics, and culture. When these technologies were introduced to the West through various channels, they substantially revolutionized world civilization.

Content Preview

• Papermaking
• Printing Techniques
• The Compass

Other Important Inventions

1. papermaking.

Paper was invented in about the year 105 AD by Cai Lun, who was an imperial court official of the Han Dynasty (206 BC – 220 AD).

Before the invention of paper, ancient people from all over the world wrote words on many kinds of natural materials, such as leaves, animal skins, rocks, and earthen plates. Chinese people used bamboo or wooden strips, tortoise shells, or shoulder blades of an ox to record important events. Books written on bamboo strips were very heavy and took up lots of space.

Later, Chinese people invented a kind of paper made of silk, which was much lighter than the strips. The paper was called bo (帛). It was so expensive that it could only be used in the imperial court or governments.

To make a cheaper kind of paper, Cai Lun used old rags, fishing nets, hemp waste, mulberry fibers, and other bast fibers to make a new kind of paper. This kind of paper was much lighter and cheaper than what came before. And it was more suitable for writing on with a Chinese brush.

The technique of making paper spread to nearby Asian countries, such as Japan, Korea, Vietnam, and so on. From the Tang Dynasty (618–907) to the Ming Dynasty (1368–1644), Chinese papermaking techniques spread all over the world, which made a great contribution to the civilization of the world, alongside movable type printing.

2. Printing Techniques — Invented from 200 AD

The moveable, reusable, clay-type printing technique was invented by Bi Sheng (970–1051) in the Song Dynasty (960–1279) after numerous tests. Before the emergence of this printing technique, manuscripts were all handwritten by scholars, which took lots of time and always included mistakes.

Earlier, Chinese people had invented block printing, which employed engraved words on wooden blocks to print with ink on a board/paper. Block printing used lots of wooden boards and became useless after one usage. Errors on the board couldn't be changed either.

During the Song Dynasty, Bi Sheng carved individual characters on fine clay pieces, which could be used again after the printing was finished. Bi Sheng's great innovation gave birth to a revolutionary printing method, so he is called the "father of typography". His technique then spread to Korea, Japan, Vietnam, and Europe.

Moveable clay type printing could be more easily used in the West due to the small number of English letters (compared to the number of Chinese characters). This printing technique made a great contribution to Western civilization as many more copies of books were printed much faster, leading to a wider sharing and development of education, knowledge, and communication.

3. Gunpowder — Invented in the 800s AD

Gunpowder was invented by Chinese alchemists during the Tang Dynasty . In medieval China, alchemists were people who tried to make an elixir of immortality as their supreme goal. They inadvertently found that a mixture of sulphur, saltpeter, and charcoal could induce an explosion.

Gunpowder was originally used for making fireworks to celebrate festivals and important events. Later, it was used as an explosive material for cannons, fire-arrows, and other weapons in military use. Gunpower was in great need as there were frequent wars during the Song and Yuan dynasties (960–1368) and mass production was developed.

The technique of making gunpowder spread to Arab countries, and then to European countries from the 12th century to the 13th century.

4. The Compass

The history of the compass can be dated back to the Warring States Period (476–221 BC), when Chinse people used a device called si nan to point the direction.

After constant improvement, a round compass with a tiny needle made of magnetized steel were invented during the early Song Dynasty. One end of the tiny needle points to the south and the other points to the north. The compass was then introduced to the Arab world and Europe during the Northern Song era (960–1127).

Before the invention of the compass, people depended on reading the positions of the sun, moon, and pole stars to tell directions on open water or unfamiliar territory. Travelling was difficult in cloudy or bad weather.

After the invention of the round compass, people could easily find a direction when sailing on the vast oceans and traversing new territory, which led to the discovery of the New World as well as the development of sailing ships.

The impact for Europe was particularly great. Using the compass, Europeans thrived at long-distance exploration and acquired more technology from around the world and great wealth. The compass enabled Europeans to discover America, dominate trade in Asia, and travel around the world.

Other important inventions were created, but these are not listed among the most important four. Most notable of these for world benefit and the development of the economies of the various empires were silk and porcelain .

They were valuable trading goods traded along the Silk Road routes, and when the methods for making these products were learned in Europe and the Islamic world, big industries developed in both areas. To learn more about technology transfer along the Silk Road, see What Was Traded on China's Silk Road and Why .

Explore China with China Highlights

Today China is a mix of ancient culture and modern technologies existing side by side. You can go with us to take a tour to discover the history and culture of China.

Tell us what most interests you about China, and our China experts will try to design a tour for you that fits you well. If the Silk Road interests you, see

• Along the Great Silk Road - Our 11-Day Xi'an, Zhangye, Dunhuang, Turpan, Urumqi, and Kashgar tour is the most selected Silk Road itinerary.

Or if the popular cities such as Beijing interest you, we have

• The Golden Triangle - 8 Days in Beijing, Xi'an, and Shanghai.

Get Inspired with Some Popular Itineraries

More Travel Ideas and Inspiration

Sign up to our newsletter.

Be the first to receive exciting updates, exclusive promotions, and valuable travel tips from our team of experts.

Why China Highlights

Where Can We Take You Today?

• Southeast Asia
• Japan, South Korea
• India, Nepal, Bhutan, and Sri lanka
• Central Asia
• Middle East
• African Safari
• Travel Agents
• Loyalty & Referral Program
• Privacy Policy

Address: Building 6, Chuangyi Business Park, 70 Qilidian Road, Guilin, Guangxi, 541004, China

10 Greatest Ancient Chinese Inventions in History

Known for its rampant innovation and large-scale industrialization, China is a behemoth in production industries. Whether it is your mobile phone or car, there are sure to be multiple parts that are made in China . However, did you know that China is also one of the largest sources of scientific discoveries and inventions throughout human history? Since more than 5,000 years ago, the Chinese have been responsible for some of the world's greatest inventions which are still used today! For example, tools such as the compass, techniques like printing, and even advanced farming all originated from Ancient China! So, let's look at some of the greatest Ancient Chinese inventions in history.

With a global consumption of more than 400 million tons, paper is an essential resource used across the globe. From writing an exam in school to drafting a proposal for work, most people use paper for some reason or the other. That being said, while it may seem synonymous with life, paper was actually invented in ancient China. First made between 25-220 AD by Ts'ai Lun, a Chinese court official during the Han Dynasty, paper was crafted by mixing mulberry bark, hemp, and rags with water. Following this, Ts'ai mashed the ingredients into a pulp and hung it out to dry into thin sheets, which became paper you could write on. This discovery transformed the previous papyrus writing techniques, and paper gradually spread throughout the globe. By the 11th century, papermaking had entered Europe, and in the 1800s, wood-based papers became the norm.

Part of the "Four Great Inventions" of China, along with paper and others, gunpowder is a monumental creation that shaped the world. While the earliest records date back to 142 AD when a Chinese alchemist referenced a gunpowder-like substance, the first confirmed reports are from the late Tang dynasty (9th century). During this time, Chinese monks mixed various ingredients to create a life-extending elixir, gradually leading them to create gunpowder. Fascinated by the powder's explosive ability, the material became popular in the country. The earliest chemical formulas of gunpowder can be traced back to the 11th century during the Song dynasty . However, the exclusivity of this powder was short-lived, as Mongol conquests in the 13th century spread knowledge across Asia and Europe. Since then, gunpowder has developed immensely with the evolution of guns, grenades, rockets, etc., across the globe! Even today, gunpowder is a staple for warfare and is mass-produced globally.

Often considered to be an Indian or British invention due to its fame in the regions, tea is a staple for millions of people across the world. Whether it is mixed with ginger, milk, or even spices, there are hundreds of ways to have tea, and most of them are utterly delicious. So, it's quite surprising to consider that tea was actually invented in ancient China more than 4,500 years ago! Dating back to the 2nd century BC during the Han dynasty, there are stories of the Chinese emperor Shen Nung accidentally discovering tea while sitting under a tree. According to records, he was sipping on boiled water when leaves blew into his friend and inspired him to create an infusion that we now know as tea. While this story has an artistic edge, leading to some doubt if it is true, China is still the first to discover tea. This is because containers for tea and records can be found dating back to 200 BC, far before the lovely drink was seen elsewhere. So, the next time you sip on some hot tea, be sure to thank Shen Nung for his inquisitive mind!

Known for its natural shine, silk is a natural protein fiber produced by silkworm larvae. This high-quality fiber, used in everything from clothing to medicine, was discovered approximately 6,000 years ago during Neolithic China within the Yangshao culture (4th millennium BC). While the earliest traces date back even further, it was during this time that concrete evidence, such as silk cocoons, woven fabrics, etc., could be found. Over the following centuries, silk was primarily confined to China, with the fabric only being seen in Korea, Japan, and India. Thanks to this, China maintained a monopoly on production for many years and is still the largest producer in the world. According to recent estimates, China produces more than 400,000 tons of silk annually, surpassing India in second place. So, from silk scarves to surgical sutures, China has paved and led the way for the world's silk industry!

Acupuncture

Acupuncture, known for its ability to heal medical issues such as pain, stress, and more, is an exciting form of alternative medicine. This advanced type of medicine has actually been around for thousands of years! While dates vary, the earliest confirmed reports of acupuncture can be traced back to Ancient China around 100 BCE in the Warring States period. This is from "The Yellow Emperor's Classic of Internal Medicine," which described it as an organized system of diagnosis and treatment. Following this, the practice became commonplace in Chinese medicine and gradually spread throughout Asia, especially to regions like India. Currently, acupuncture has spread worldwide and is renowned as an ideal method to relieve your body of pain and stress!

The Compass

Before our advanced GPS systems and mobile navigation devices were introduced, the compass was the gold standard in traveling and guidance. Use a compass with a map, and you can cross uncharted waters to reach any country in the world. Just take a look at famous explorers like Christopher Columbus, who relied on a compass to find new lands. Well, the compass is another amazing invention by the Ancient Chinese! The first compass was developed between 200 BC and 200 AD during the Han dynasty with a naturally magnetized lodestone. That being said, for the first few centuries, they were primarily used for fortune-telling and feng shui. It was in the 11th century, during the Song dynasty in China, that compasses became the norm for navigation. Following this, the technology was soon incorporated by Europeans, allowing people to travel and explore with much more certainty in their route.

The Modern Bristle Toothbrush

While we may be accustomed to the modern bristle toothbrush, it is actually quite a recent innovation we can thank the Ancient Chinese for. This is because up until the 15th century, civilizations used things such as twigs and leaves to brush their teeth, if they did brush in the first place. It was only in 1498 that the Chinese designed the first bristle brush using a mix of bamboo for the handle and pig's neck hair for the bristles. This design quickly replaced the previous twig chewing sticks and became the norm for dental hygiene. With its popularity, the following century saw Europeans copy the design with horse hairs and gradually develop it further into the synthetic brushes we have today. So, in a sense, we should be grateful to the Chinese for saving us from brushing with tree twigs.

Row Crop Farming

Apart from the many items designed and invented by the Ancient Chinese, they are also known for many unique techniques and ideas. One such innovative technique is row crop farming, which was groundbreaking at the time. While other civilizations were still planting their crops haphazardly with minimal productivity, the Chinese were the first to understand that aligning crops in rows would allow for better yield and easier planting. Thus, as early as the 6th century BC, Chinese farmers began row crop farming and were the only ones to do so for many centuries. It took approximately 2000 more years for the Western world to catch on to the technique, after which it became the norm for farming across the globe.

Although this may seem like a recent invention, rockets have been around for nearly one thousand years. Bolstered by their invention of gunpowder, a vital ingredient for rockets, the ancient Chinese invented rocket-like propulsion systems as early as the Song dynasty (10th century). Although, the first confirmed reports of rockets date back to the 13th century when they were used during Mongol invasions in China. One specific instance was the battle of Kai-Keng, when the Chinese used a barrage of rocket-propelled arrows to hold off Mongol invaders. Following the 1300s, the technology spread across Eurasia and set the stage for the massive missiles, spaceships, and other rockets we see today. So, everything from fighter jets to space travel might not have been possible without the amazing innovations of both gunpowder and rockets by the Ancient Chinese!

More in Ancient Inventions

• Ancient Greek Inventions That Are Still Used Today
• Ancient Egyptian Inventions That Are Still Used Today
• Ancient Roman Inventions That Are Still Used Today
• 10 Ancient Inventions Still Used Today

With so many groundbreaking inventions, we can easily say that the Ancient Chinese were far ahead of their time. From the compass on your phone to the tea you drink, they have been at the forefront of innovation for thousands of years. So, a testament to their skill and forefront thinking, it is quite fitting that the Chinese are now one of the world's largest producers of a plethora of items from energy to small goods!

More in History

How Did The First Palestinian Intifada Begin?

The Romani Migration from India to Europe

What Was Life Like in the Roman Army?

The Remarkable Story of the Roman Titus Tunnel in Turkey

The World's Longest Continuously Inhabited City

The History Of NATO Operations

Who Invented the Toaster?

Why Did Israel Invade Lebanon in 1982?

Ancient China

Inventions and technology.

• Gunpowder, paper, printing, and the compass are sometimes called the Four Great Inventions of Ancient China.
• Kites were first used as a way for the army to signal warnings.
• Umbrellas were invented for protection from the sun as well as the rain.
• Chinese doctors knew about certain herbs to help sick people. They also knew that eating good foods was important to being healthy.
• Compasses were often used to make sure that homes were built facing the correct direction so they would be in harmony with nature.
• The Grand Canal in China is the longest manmade canal or river in the world. It is over 1,100 miles long and stretches from Beijing to Hangzhou.
• They invented the abacus in the 2nd century BC. This was a calculator that used sliding beads to help compute math problems quickly.
• A clear coating called lacquer was made to protect and enhance certain works of art and furniture.
• Paper money was first developed and used in China during the Tang dynasty (7th century).
• Take a ten question quiz about this page.
• Listen to a recorded reading of this page:

Search on OralHistory.ws Blog

Unfolding the Wisdom: An Essay Sample on Ancient Chinese Contributions

Today’s world is developing people’s common global culture. Every country contributes a piece of its own culture. Chinese culture was one of the most important cultures that influenced the evolution of human civilization. The history of this country is very rich and glorious. Its citizens were very inventive. Ancient Chinese created many useful things and devices and made many inventions. They had a great impact on the life of every person. Ancient China was in the foreground of science and technology. This country gave birth to many scientific and technological inventions and led the world in these innovations for many centuries.

The most important and helpful contributions the Chinese made to modern people’s lives were: paper, abacus, gunpowder, printing press, umbrellas, clocks, compass, porcelains, maps, wheelbarrows, and silk. Chinese made major developments “in farming, iron and copper metallurgy, exploitation of coal and petroleum, machinery, medicine, astronomy, mathematics, porcelain, silk, and winemaking” (Yinke, 2011). It is important to single out four of the most important inventions made by Chinese civilization. They are the invention of paper and printing, gunpowder, magnetic compasses, and silk.

Among all the inventions of the ancient world, only a few may be compared in significance with the invention of paper and printing by the ancient Chinese. Before the Chinese used paper for writing at the beginning of the Christian era, they selected various hard and soft materials for documents, historical records, and personal communication (Needham, 1985). Chinese made them from bones of animals, shells, bronze, iron, gold, and silver. Cai Lun invented paper sometime before the Christian era. Ancient Chinese made paper by hand and mostly with natural resources. Paper made of hemp had already been in use before Cai Lun, but he improved both the techniques and its quality while using various materials, such as tree bark, hemp, and rags (Sayre, 2011). By the seventh century A.D., the Chinese invented the first printing press. The movable type appeared later. Chinese made it of wood, metal, and a variety of ceramics. Europe did not know anything about printing at that time. Paper and printing originated in China, and only later did the Chinese spread it worldwide. The importance of the invention of paper and printing is obvious. Although new means of communication have developed recently, the unique combination of ink, paper, and printing is still the most basic, important, permanent, and accessible communication device known today.

The invention of gunpowder is also of great importance. An interesting fact is that the invention of gunpowder was an accident. Chinese alchemists wanted to make an elixir of immortal life. They mixed sulfur, saltpeter, and charcoal and, by accident, created a powder for weapons. The invention of gunpowder dates back to 142 A.D., during the reign of the Han dynasty. Firstly people used it as fireworks, and only later did the Chinese begin to use gunpowder in wars. Ancient Chinese put gunpowder in cannons, guns, and rockets. People invented gunpowder to have an immortal life, but it is the cause of people’s death. Still, gunpowder is one of the most important inventions that have changed methods of war and warfare.

The magnetic compass is another very important invention in the history of humanity. The first compass ever created was a spoon made of lodestone put on a bronze plate, and the tail of the spoon (the handle) always pointed to the South (Nguyen). Ancient Chinese designed a compass not for navigation; they used the compass for harmonization and order in their lives. First Chinese compasses pointed to the South, but Europeans used compasses that pointed to the North. So, Europeans also invented the compass, but some time later than the Chinese. The compass is a very important device that greatly impacted people’s lives. While traveling, knowing what direction a person is facing is very important. Compass makes it easier to navigate through the oceans to find ships’ way to land, helps people find their way home, and allows exploration of other continents and countries. To sum up, the compass is a very useful invention, and with the help of a compass, one can navigate his or her way and the way of different vehicles.

Finally, the fourth among the most important inventions is silk. For many centuries, European people knew little about silk and those people who discovered it. According to the legend, the wife of the Chinese Emperor, Leizu, discovered silk. She found a silkworm that made a fine thread. Silk was very valuable in Ancient China. Silk cloth was the symbol of status. Chinese used silk for clothing, paper, fishing lines, musical instruments, and painting.

In some cases, it was used as a currency. The discovery of silk was very important in the history of human civilization because people had used clothing made of birds for many centuries before. The invention of silk influenced Chinese culture and the economy of the world.

To sum up, the Ancient Chinese contributed a lot to the history of human civilization. They invented many devices. Among the most useful are: paper, compass, gunpowder, and silk. Chinese invented writing independently, without any knowledge of developments elsewhere in the world, and the art of writing – or calligraphy – is highly regarded (Allan, 2012). To my mind, the invention of paper is the most important event. If we did not have paper, we would be unable to save and store written communications, and perhaps, many of us would be illiterate. Books printed many centuries ago are still in good condition. Chinese invented paper many centuries ago, but we still use it daily. With the invention of paper and printing, the Chinese influenced the development of the world greatly.

📎 References:

1. Allan, T. & Phillips, C. (2012). Ancient China’s myths and beliefs. New York, NY: The Rosen Publishing Group, Inc. 2. Yinka, D. (2011). Ancient Chinese inventions. (3rd ed., p. 162). New York, NY: Cambridge University Press. 3. Needham, J. (1985). Science and civilization in China. (p. 485). New York, NY: Cambridge University Press. 4. Nguyen, D. (n.d.). The invention of the compass. Retrieved from http://www.culture-4-travel.com/invention-of-the-compass.html 5. Sayre, H. (2011). The humanities: culture, continuity, and change. (Vol. 1, p. 673). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Education, Inc.

Worried About Plagiarism?

Get 20% Off

on Plagiarism & AI Check Services!

History Cooperative

Who Invented Paper? The History of Paper and Paper Making

The invention of paper is attributed to ancient China. Papermaking is traditionally believed to have been invented by Cai Lun, a Chinese eunuch and official during the Eastern Han Dynasty, around 105 CE. Cai Lun’s contribution to papermaking involved the refinement of the process, making it more consistent and practical for widespread use.

This invention had a profound impact on the world as it made written information more accessible, leading to advancements in education, communication, and the preservation of knowledge. Papermaking technology eventually spread to other parts of the world and played a pivotal role in the dissemination of information and culture.

Table of Contents

Who Invented Paper?

Cai Lun, a Chinese eunuch and government official during the Eastern Han Dynasty (around 105 CE), is often credited with inventing a more standardized form of paper. He is known for refining the papermaking process by using a mixture of mulberry tree bark, old fishing nets, and other materials to create a pulp that could be formed into sheets.

READ MORE: A Full Timeline of Chinese Dynasties in Order

Cai Lun’s innovations marked a crucial step in the evolution of paper as a writing and printing medium. However, it’s important to note that papermaking was a gradual process that evolved over time , and Cai Lun’s work represents a significant milestone rather than the sole invention of paper. Different forms of early paper and writing materials were used in various parts of the world before the widespread adoption of paper as we know it today.

Earlier Forms and Uses of Paper-Like Substances

Before the craft heralded by Cai Lun, ancient civilizations had embarked on their quests to document the intangible, inscribing their stories upon a myriad of surfaces, from the rigid constraints of clay tablets to the perishable papyrus of the Egyptians. The predecessor of paper, papyrus, was a medium primarily reserved for the elite and the sacred, given its labor-intensive process and the scarcity of materials. This thirst for a more versatile and accessible medium was, to a remarkable extent, quenched by the advent of paper, transcending boundaries in how knowledge was created, preserved, and shared.

READ MORE: Ancient Egypt Timeline: Predynastic Period Until the Persian Conquest

Recognition and Adaptation of Paper Invention Across the World

Paper, with its boundless potential, did not remain an exclusive secret of the Chinese empire for long. Through the Silk Road, explorations, and conquests, the knowledge of papermaking began to seep into the expansive terrains of the world beyond. The gradual percolation of this technology into the Middle East, and subsequently into the heart of Europe, symbolizes not merely the migration of an invention, but the ushering in of an epoch where ideas could be immortalized and disseminated with hitherto unimagined ease and efficacy.

When Was Paper Invented?

Paper was invented around 105 AD, under the auspices of the Han Dynasty, when Cai Lun unveiled his refined method of papermaking. Although ostensibly novel, Cai Lun’s method was an enhancement of existing knowledge, coalescing diverse practices into a unified, scalable methodology that metamorphosed isolated practices into a wide-reaching industry.

READ MORE: Ancient Chinese Inventions

Spread and Adaptation of Papermaking Technique Through the Centuries

As centuries unfurled, so did the craft of papermaking, intricately intertwining with the fates of empires and the aspirations of scholars, merchants, and artisans. By the 8th century, the technique infiltrated the sophisticated realms of the Islamic world, particularly in places like Samarkand and Baghdad, becoming synonymous with the illustrious academic and artistic achievements of the epoch. This subtle convergence of craft and intellect propelled the methodology westward, where it would eventually anchor in the scientific and cultural environments of Europe.

Notable Milestones in Early Paper Production

The introduction of water-powered paper mills in Spain during the 12th century signified a tangible departure from manual labor, unleashing a cascade of possibilities for mass production and broader accessibility. Likewise, the advent of the printing press in the 15th century intertwined with the availability of paper, propelling an unprecedented proliferation of knowledge, and scribing indelible marks upon the unfolding narrative of humanity.

Historical Documentation and Evidence

Submerging into the reservoirs of historical documents, tangible artifacts narrate the intricate journey of paper through time and space. From the delicately inscribed scrolls safeguarded within the cavernous folds of ancient libraries to the meticulous records of merchants traversing the serpentine trails of the Silk Road, historical documentation enshrines the migration and adaptation of papermaking. Diverse evidence, such as the resilient manuscripts of the Islamic Golden Age and the voluminous tomes of European scholars, not only validate the chronology of the paper’s journey but also offer glimpses into the transformative influence it wielded across varied domains of human endeavor.

The Process of Ancient Papermaking

Early paper creation involved using various organic and natural materials. Unlike the sturdy yet pliable papyrus plant, early Chinese paper incorporated raw materials and resources such as mulberry bark, hemp fibers, worn fishing nets, and old rags. This amalgamation of materials was macerated into a pulp, setting the stage for a process that delicately balanced artistry and practicality, leading to a material that was at once durable, malleable, and elegantly fine.

Techniques and Steps in the Original Paper Production

Initially, the collected materials, enriched by their varied origins, were submerged in water, transforming into a homogenized pulp through a meticulous process of fermentation and maceration. This pulp was then suspended in water and carefully ladled onto a flat, woven surface to form a thin layer. Nature’s own elements, air, and sunlight, caressed this fragile layer, coaxing it gently into a form that was robust yet whisper-thin, ready to cradle the ink and embody the thoughts of countless generations.

READ MORE: Who Invented Water? History of the Water Molecule

Innovations and Variations in Different Regions

There were various adaptations of this creation and each region had its own version. In the Islamic world, for example, craftsmen embraced the abundant flax and linen, diverging from the traditional Chinese materials, yet paralleling the essential techniques. Whereas, in medieval Europe, the introduction of mechanized mills and the adoption of various locally available materials, such as cotton and linen rags, reshaped the craft, tailoring it to their own technological abilities and needs.

READ MORE: Who Invented the Cotton Gin? Eli Whitney and Cotton Gin Impact on America

The Transition to Modern Papermaking

With the European introduction of the paper mill, driven by the inexorable currents of flowing water, the craft began to intertwine with industrialization. As centuries cascaded forward, further innovations, such as the invention of the papermaking machine and the adaptation of wood pulp in the 19th century, symbolized a stark divergence from the manual, artisanal practices of the past, melding the craft into the ever-accelerating pulse of the industrial age.

The Global Spread and Evolution of Papermaking

The knowledge about the techniques of papermaking found their way into civilizations far removed from the rich landscapes of China and Chinese papermakers. The agents of this dissemination were myriad: traders, explorers, and conquerors traversing the sinuous paths of the Silk Road.

Adaptation and Enhancements in the Middle East

When the gentle echo of papermaking reached the vibrant, intellectual arenas of the Middle East, it was embraced, nurtured, and included in their academic and artistic pursuits. The Islamic world, with its inherent reverence for knowledge and script, nurtured and enhanced the craft, introducing new materials and refining techniques to produce finer, more exquisite paper that became a coveted medium for the prolific scholarly and creative outputs of the time.

Introduction and Development in Europe

Europe welcomed paper as a harbinger of connectivity and knowledge dissemination. Paper mills, exploiting the energetic torrents of European rivers, breathed life into an industrial approach to papermaking. As time meandered through the Renaissance and into the Enlightenment, the proliferation of paper became synonymous with the dispersion of knowledge, creativity, and the inexorable forward march of innovation and discovery.

The Role of Paper in the Proliferation of Knowledge and Communication

With making paper, knowledge was no longer a fleeting whisper, tethered to the ephemeral. It could now traverse time and space, leaping from the vibrant minds of scholars, artists, and thinkers into the collective consciousness of entire civilizations. From the meticulous scrolls of medieval scribes to the mass-produced pages of enlightenment literature, and further into the hearty newspapers of the modern era, paper became an unassuming yet powerful catalyst, propelling societies into new realms of collective knowledge, awareness, and cultural evolution.

Impact of Paper on Society and Culture

Paper, in its humble existence, fortified the preservation and dissemination of knowledge, allowing the intellectual pursuits of one epoch to whisper wisdom into the ears of subsequent generations, and enabling the perennial flow of understanding that shaped the contours of society and thought through time.

Artistic Expression Through Paper

Beyond mere communication, paper tenderly cradled the artistic soul of humanity, offering a canvas where imaginations danced free and emotions found form. Calligraphy, painting, and origami, these delicate articulations of human creativity, found a welcoming space upon the accommodating expanse of paper.

The Economic Implications of Paper Production

The emergence of paper subtly yet irrevocably altered the economic landscapes of societies. Its pivotal role in facilitating complex bureaucracies, enabling expansive trade networks, and propelling the proliferation of printed material, erected an unseen yet foundational pillar upon which the economic dynamics of civilizations found stability and mobility. Further, the interplay between paper money and economic stratification surfaced, allowing for a nuanced and multifaceted medium of exchange, altering the economic interactions and hierarchies within society.

The Role of Paper in Education and Government

Paper was an unassuming accomplice in the evolution of educational and governmental structures. The educational realm, now enriched with textbooks, research papers, and written examinations, blossomed into a more accessible and structured entity, democratizing knowledge across various strata of society. Meanwhile, governmental machinations, facilitated by the written record, policy documentation, and bureaucratic correspondence, became more intricate and accountable.

The invention of paper is traditionally attributed to ancient China, with Cai Lun often recognized for his significant contributions to the development of papermaking around 105 CE during the Eastern Han Dynasty.

While paper as we know it has evolved and improved over time, Cai Lun’s innovations marked an important milestone in the history of papermaking. However, it’s essential to recognize that papermaking was a gradual process that involved the refinement of techniques and materials over centuries, and various forms of writing materials were used in different parts of the world before paper became the dominant medium for writing and printing.

How to Cite this Article

There are three different ways you can cite this article.

1. To cite this article in an academic-style article or paper , use:

<a href=" https://historycooperative.org/who-invented-paper/ ">Who Invented Paper? The History of Paper and Paper Making</a>

Leave a Comment Cancel reply

The Invention of Paper

Who Invented Paper, and When?

Robert Essel NYC / Getty Images 

• Figures & Events
• Southeast Asia
• Middle East
• Central Asia
• Asian Wars and Battles
• American History
• African American History
• African History
• Ancient History and Culture
• European History
• Latin American History
• Medieval & Renaissance History
• Military History
• The 20th Century
• Women's History
• Ph.D., History, Boston University
• J.D., University of Washington School of Law
• B.A., History, Western Washington University

Try to imagine life without paper. Even in the era of emails and digital books, paper is all around us. Paper is in shopping bags, money, store receipts, cereal boxes, and toilet paper. We use paper in so many ways every day. So, where did this marvelously versatile material come from?

According to ancient Chinese historical sources, a court eunuch named Ts'ai Lun (or Cai Lun) presented the newly-invented paper to the Emperor Hedi of the Eastern Han Dynasty in 105 CE. The historian Fan Hua (398-445 CE) recorded this version of events, but archaeological finds from western China and Tibet suggest that paper was invented centuries earlier.

Samples of even more ancient paper, some of it dating to c. 200 BCE, have been unearthed in the ancient Silk Road cities of Dunhuang and Khotan, and in Tibet. The dry climate in these places allowed the paper to survive for up to 2,000 years without entirely decomposing. Amazingly, some of this paper even has ink marks on it, proving that ink was invented much earlier than historians had supposed.

Writing Materials Before Paper

Of course, people in various places around the world were writing long before the invention of paper. Materials such as bark, silk, wood, and leather functioned in a similar way to paper, although they were either much more expensive or heavier. In China, many early works were recorded on long bamboo strips , which were then bound with leather straps or string into books.

People world-wide also carved very important notations into stone or bone, or pressed stamps into wet clay and then dried or fired the tablets to preserve their words. However, writing (and later printing) required a material that was both cheap and lightweight to become truly ubiquitous. Paper fit the bill perfectly.

Chinese Paper-Making

Early paper-makers in China used hemp fibers, which were soaked in water and pounded with a large wooden mallet. The resulting slurry was then poured over a horizontal mold; loosely-woven cloth stretched over a framework of bamboo allowed the water to drip out the bottom or evaporate, leaving behind a flat sheet of dry hemp-fiber paper.

Over time, paper-makers began to use other materials in their product, including bamboo, mulberry and different types of tree bark. They dyed paper for official records with a yellow substance, the imperial color, which had the added benefit of repelling insects that might have destroyed the paper otherwise.

One of the most common formats for early paper was the scroll. A few long pieces of paper were pasted together to form a strip, which was then wrapped around a wooden roller. The other end of the paper was attached to a thin wooden dowel, with a piece of silk cord in the middle to tie the scroll shut.

The Spread of Paper-Making

From its point of origin in China, the idea and technology of paper-making spread throughout Asia. In the 500s CE, artisans on the Korean Peninsula began to make paper using many of the same materials as Chinese paper-makers. The Koreans also used rice straw and seaweed, expanding the types of fiber available for paper production. This early adoption of paper fueled the Korean innovations in printing, as well. Metal movable type was invented by 1234 CE on the peninsula.

Around 610 CE, according to legend, the Korean Buddhist monk Don-Cho introduced paper-making to the court of Emperor Kotoku in Japan . Paper-making technology also spread west through Tibet and then south into India .

Paper Reaches the Middle East and Europe

In 751 CE, the armies of Tang China and the ever-expanding Arab Abbasid Empire clashed in the Battle of Talas River , in what is now Kyrgyzstan. One of the most interesting repercussions of this Arab victory was that the Abbasids captured Chinese artisans, including master paper-makers like Tou Houan, and took them back to the Middle East.

At that time, the Abbasid Empire stretched from Spain and Portugal in the west through North Africa to Central Asia in the east, so knowledge of this marvelous new material spread far and wide. Before long, cities from Samarkand (now in Uzbekistan ) to Damascus and Cairo had become centers of paper production.

In 1120, the Moors established Europe's first paper mill at Valencia, Spain (then called Xativa). From there, this Chinese invention passed to Italy, Germany, and other parts of Europe. Paper helped spread knowledge, much of which was gleaned from the great Asian culture centers along the Silk Road, that enabled Europe's High Middle Ages.

Manifold Uses

Meanwhile, in East Asia, paper was used for an enormous number of purposes. Combined with varnish, it became beautiful lacquer-ware storage vessels and furniture. In Japan, the walls of homes were often made of rice-paper. Besides paintings and books, paper was made into fans, umbrellas, even highly effective armor. Paper truly is one of the most wonderful Asian inventions of all time.

History of China, "Invention of Paper in China," 2007.

" The Invention of Paper ," Robert C. Williams Paper Museum, Georgia Tech, accessed Dec. 16, 2011.

"Understanding Manuscripts," International Dunhuang Project, accessed Dec. 16, 2011.​

Wei Zhang. The Four Treasures: Inside the Scholar's Studio , San Francisco: Long River Press, 2004.

• The Invention of Paper Money
• The Invention of the Wheelbarrow
• Culture, War, and Major Events in Asian History
• The Invention of the Crossbow
• The Invention of the Mirror
• The Invention of the Saddle Stirrup
• The Invention of the Seismoscope
• The Invention of Gunpowder: A History
• The Great Rivalry Between Nomads and Settled People in Asia
• How the Black Death Started in Asia
• What Is a Sphere of Influence?
• What Does the Word 'Aryan' Actually Mean?
• Comparative Colonization in Asia
• What You Should Know About Unequal Treaties
• Asia's Worst Dictators
• Which Asian Nations Were Never Colonized by Europe?

• Search Close search
• Find a journal
• Search calls for papers
• Journal Suggester
• Open access publishing

We’re here to help

Find guidance on Author Services

Open access

A Tradition of Invention: The Paradox of Glorifying Past Technological Breakthroughs

• Cite this article
• https://doi.org/10.1080/18752160.2022.2095103

1 “Man is a Tool-making Animal”

2 from “chinese edisons” to “frying up cold rice”, 3 “creating the modern world”, 4 conclusion, acknowledgements, additional information.

• Full Article
• Figures & data
• Reprints & Permissions
• View PDF PDF View EPUB EPUB

This article examines how the notion of a tradition of invention, which took shape in China in the nineteenth century, became entrenched there by the 1920s. It begins by looking at how invention received heightened attention from Chinese elites in the May Fourth era, when many of them upheld the primacy of science for national salvation while science’s very rectitude was being contested. It then explores how these elites took up and contributed to narratives of a past inventiveness as a way of imagining possibilities of a better future, the most notable expression of which was the idea of the “four great inventions.” Finally, it delves into a particular paradox that underlay this glorification of prior scientific and technological achievements. While staking claim to a tradition of invention may have been ultimately for the purpose of charting a course toward a technoscientific tomorrow, the fixation on those past accomplishments led many Chinese across China’s long twentieth century to either ignore or downplay domestic developments in science and technology that were actually taking place. Ironically, then, the nagging sense of inferiority that underlay the lauding of ancient inventions came to be reinforced rather than alleviated by that very act.

• technonationalism
• four great inventions
• May Fourth movement

In a 1928 essay comparing Eastern and Western civilizations, the prominent May Fourth thinker Hu Shih 胡適 (1891–1962) wrote admiringly of his ancestors’ idolization of inventiveness. “In the East,” he noted, “all the legendary kings of China were not priest-philosophers, but inventors.” According to Chinese lore, as it was with the mythologies of many other cultures, technologies foundational to human existence could be credited to certain fabled figures. To Hu, the ancient Chinese inventors included “Sui-jen [Suiren], the discoverer of fire, You-tsao [Youchao], the first builder of houses, and Shen-nung [Shennong], the first teacher of agriculture and medicine.” As he saw it, that the early Chinese had venerated such makers of things was notable and commendable. “Our forefathers were quite right,” he insisted, “in deifying the creators of tools.” In Hu’s brief take on the long arc of human history, it was “the invention of necessary and effective tools” that accounted for civilizational advancement. This was, he noted, a process to which “the East,” having produced “a number of epoch-making tools of ancient civilization,” had once contributed (Hu Citation 1928 : 26–27).

Hu Shih’s interest in inventiveness is not so surprising. Like most of his fellow May Fourth reformers, he regarded science as intertwined with the ongoing challenge of national salvation. And like countless others in China and elsewhere, he took inventions to be materializations of science (Bud and Shiach Citation 2018 : 1). In the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, China occupied an inferior position on the global stage. It was frequently subjugated to the whims of foreign empires. When the other Entente Powers undermined its interests at the post–World War I peace conference by leaving seized German concessions in Shandong province in Japanese hands instead of returning them to Chinese possession, this seemed like yet another indignation it was expected to endure. The May Fourth movement arose out of student protests pushing back against that decision. It also catalyzed ongoing efforts at social reform that proponents believed necessary were China to be extricated from its seemingly perpetual state of “national humiliation” (Cohen Citation 2003 : 175–176).

To many Chinese reformers, science was a critical variable in explaining the present predicament. “Were we to take stock of why our country has been so afflicted by poverty and weakness,” chemist Ren Hongjun 任鴻雋 (1886–1961), writing in 1915, contended, “it would become evident that the lack of science is a key cause” (Ren Citation 1915 : 8). Within this dominant narrative, science served as the foundation for the modern technological discoveries through which China might attain the wealth and power it so deeply desired. The premium that Hu placed on invention might then be expected. What is slightly unexpected, though, is that he, as an exemplar of May Fourth iconoclasm, would identify an inventiveness worth extolling in the Chinese past.

Yet Hu Shih’s celebration of this “tradition of invention” (as I term the notion of a past defined by technological novelty) was consistent with a claim that several Chinese writers had been asserting in earnest for several decades: many of the contrivances deemed significant to the constitution of the modern world had their origins in China. A claim of this order invited dissent. To one presumably foreign commentator, writing in 1888 in the North-China Herald , it was an “attitude of mind” that did not hold up to the facts. The Jesuits of old were purportedly to blame in this case. Because they were “naturally anxious to belaud the civilization of the country they came to convert, in order to magnify success or to extenuate failure,” these missionaries, who were active in China in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, allegedly ended up “crediting the Chinese with the invention of any useful art which they found to be common to Europe and China” (“Chinese Claims to Inventions” Citation 1888 ). Whatever its earliest inspiration and despite opposition of this sort, the claim continued to gain traction in the years that followed. In the 1920s and 1930s, it would take its most enduring form in the “four great inventions” (四大發明) of paper, printing, the magnetic compass, and gunpowder.

This glorification of ancient Chinese inventions was, no doubt, an expression of techno-nationalist impulses. In an industrial modern age wherein machines had become, as historian Michael Adas has memorably phrased it, “the measure of men,” one way that a society might assert its importance over another was through technological breakthroughs of global significance (Adas Citation 1989 ). By extension of this logic, advancements in technology not only in the present but also of the past could be taken as sources of national pride. The “ardent desire to claim priority over Europeans in useful inventions” was but a display of the “patriotism of China,” one observer, writing in 1889, concluded (“Chinese Origins of Western Inventions” Citation 1889 ). In the Chinese case, this effort appears to have had the added function of compensating, at least rhetorically, for the country’s current state of relative weakness. Here, past triumphs stood in for an apparent lack of present accomplishments.

That said, the appeal to a tradition of invention also represented an attempt to retrieve from a glorious past the hope for a brighter future, an attempt which rested on a particular conception of the relationship between science and invention. In her study of everyday technologies in colonial Korea, historian of science Jung Lee demonstrates how Korean cultural elites bound by the constraints of Japanese rule came to embrace self-made inventors. Referred to as “Korean Edisons,” these inventors may have lacked formal scientific and technological training but nevertheless managed to create devices for which they would successfully secure patents. Lee contends that this was predicated on rejecting the notion, dominant in Japan and much of the West, of invention as necessarily tethered to science. Instead, what emerged, she argues, was a novel and even subversive idea of “invention without science” (Lee Citation 2013 ). China may not have been formally colonized, but it often found itself, like Korea, under the heel of colonial powers. Yet while there were inventors here who would be similarly labeled “Chinese Edisons” (as we will later see), Chinese cultural elites, unlike their Korean counterparts, held fast to the pairing of invention and science.

In taking the more conventional view that science begot inventions, these Chinese elites, following the same logic, regarded the inventions of old as proof that their predecessors possessed forms of knowledge that were either precursors to or the equivalent of modern science. As such, China may be stricken by a “lack of science” in the present, but the country had the capacity to acquire science and to use it for its advancement, or so the argument went. For example, in a 1930 essay on China’s ancient inventions, educator Wang Zhixin 王治心 (1881–1968) stressed that by bringing up those inventions he was not asking his countrymen to abandon western science in self-congratulation. Rather, he was calling for them “to strive all the more to learn western science in the knowledge that our ancestors had previously made strides on that front” (Wang Citation 1930 : 56).

The idea of invention as an engine for progress received what was likely its fullest explication among Chinese intellectuals in the May Fourth era. This was in spite (or perhaps because) of how the moral authority of science and technology was being called into question then. World War I, which came right before, had upended cherished notions about the unequivocal virtue of the technoscientific. While there had been some detractors in the past, ideas of how science and technology would make the world a better place went for the most part unchallenged in the period leading up to the war. Amid continuous innovations in the tools of warfare, for instance, “military pundits in the prewar years chose to stress the ways in which the new weapons would shorten wars rather than make them more horrific” (Adas Citation 1989 : 345–380, quote on 366). The sheer devastation that the war wrought shook the confidence that many had in such assumptions. It was in this context that Hu Shih would pen his essay about invention and civilization.

Hu Shih had framed his essay as a response to European writers who had taken to castigating what they viewed as the “bankruptcy of the material civilization of the West” (Hu Citation 1928 : 25). His piece was part of a collection put together by the American philosopher and historian Charles A. Beard. The purpose of this volume, Beard explained, was to cultivate “a more cheerful outlook upon the future of modern civilization” in the face of postwar pessimism over prospects for humanity’s continued progress (Beard Citation 1928 : v). Other contributors included Bertrand Russell, Sidney and Beatrice Webb, and Lewis Mumford—fellow luminaries in a darkened age.

The European writers Hu was addressing had been championing the “superiority of the spiritual civilization of the Oriental nations.” Such a move was, he contended, misguided. Not only did it rest on a false distinction between the material and the spiritual, but it also overlooked how the development of civilization to that point had been determined by the discovery and deployment of material tools. In his estimation, China had fallen behind the West on account of “a difference in tools used” and was thus unworthy of esteem and emulation, no matter what those European writers claimed (Hu Citation 1928 : 25–26).

Underlying Hu Shih’s defense of materiality and, by extension, Western civilization was a particular understanding of the relationship between technology and society. “Man is a tool-making animal,” he declared, “and it is tool-making that constitutes civilization.” Human history, to Hu, consisted of a series of epochs created in succession through certain important inventions: first fire, then agriculture, then writing, then printing. Closer to the present, he singled out “the invention of the telescope and the steam-engine” and “the discovery of electricity and radio activity” as having contributed to the production of the present. “If the priests of the Mediæval Age were justly canonized as saints,” he mused, “Galileo, Watt, Stephenson, Morse, Bell, Edison, and Ford certainly deserve to be honored as gods and enshrined with Prometheus and Cadmus” (Hu Citation 1928 : 26–27). Here was an expression of technological determinism, in which the trajectory from past to present was conceived as largely linear, its arc marked by a select set of inventions. Footnote 1

Confucius and Plato and Aristotle lived in those good old days when the human mind was not yet troubled by the mediæval dualism of matter and spirit and was therefore able to recognize the ideality underlying the material embodiment of human inventions. Indeed there is no such thing as a purely material civilization. (Hu Citation 1928 : 25–26)

Moreover, there was merit to materiality, Hu contended, holding fast to the idea that the path of progress was paved by material things. If “the civilization of a race is simply the sum-total of its achievements in adjusting itself to the environment,” then “success or failure in that adjustment depends on the ability of the race to use intelligence for the invention of necessary and effective tools,” he reasoned (Hu Citation 1928 : 27). In this framing, the degree to which a society might be said to be advanced was determined by the extent to which it made and mobilized machines to master its surroundings. The inventions of the modern age, “constructed for the control of the resources and powers in nature,” had enabled feats once thought impossible, allowing human beings “to fly in the air, tunnel the mountains and sail underneath the deep seas, to enslave lightning to pull our carriages and employ ‘ether’ to deliver our messages throughout the world.” In these endeavors, “science and machinery seem to meet no resistance from nature,” Hu wrote. The result had been, in his assessment, overwhelmingly positive: “Life has become easier and happier, and man’s confidence in his own powers has greatly increased. Man has become the master of himself and of his own destiny” (Hu Citation 1928 : 31). To Hu, material advancement yielded considerable self-reliance and self-determination, which were fundamental to his picture of progress.

Self-reliance, self-determination, and, indeed, progress itself were, as Hu Shih saw it, ultimately about relief—relief from the constraints and demands of the physical world that would otherwise require human exertions so that humankind may then be freed to pursue things of an elevated order. It meant, he asserted, “the use of human intelligence to devise tools and machines to multiple the working ability and productivity of man.” This would then allow him to “be relieved from the fate of toiling incessantly with his unaided hands, feet, and back without being able to earn a bare subsistence.” At the end of the day, this would, Hu maintained, allow the human individual to have enough time and energy left to seek and enjoy the higher values which civilization can offer him (Hu Citation 1928 : 29).

It was in regard to technology and labor that the true difference between China and the West might be discerned, Hu argued. This he illustrated with an example from the Manchurian city of Harbin, which he had visited two years prior. In the Chinese portion of the city, Hu noted, almost all the vehicles were rickshaws, pulled by “those human beasts of burden who run and toil and sweat under that peculiar bondage of slavery which knows neither the minimum wage nor any limit of working hours.” In the adjoining former Russian concession, however, transport was by tramways and taxicabs, motorized forms of modern mobility. “Here I made my great discovery in modern geography,” Hu exclaimed, “I discovered the borderline between the Eastern and Western civilizations” (Hu Citation 1928 : 28–29). On one side was inhumane drudgery; on the other, delivery from it by means of machines.

Others would echo Hu’s general line of reasoning. Most notable among them was the writer, linguist, and sometime inventor Lin Yutang 林語堂 (1895–1976). In 1929, he gave an address to the Chinese Language Society titled “Machine and Spirit” (機器與精神). In it, he argued, contrary to the claims of some, that machine civilization—as an instantiation of material civilization—and spiritual civilization were not diametrically opposed. “We should not be mistaken that China’s underdevelopment in terms of machines is proof of its spiritual civilization,” Lin cautioned, drawing on vivid imagery. “It is not necessarily the case that one who sits on a plumbed toilet to take a shit is spiritually degenerate nor is it guaranteed that one who squats over a traditional latrine to relieve himself is spiritually sound” (Lin Citation 1930 : 7).

For Lin, as it was for Hu and others, material achievement would in fact create the conditions of possibility for spiritual attainment. “We need to understand that the China of today needs to first have a material civilization,” he wrote, “Only then can it speak of a spiritual civilization; only then can it have the spare time and financial resources to preserve national essence” (Lin Citation 1930 : 10). In this line of thinking, invention furnished the means by which the material base necessary for higher order spiritual edifices could be raised.

As far as Hu Shih and likeminded compatriots like Lin were concerned, China was mired in the medievalism of material backwardness. The result was both physical oppression and spiritual poverty. Addressing those who sought to excavate from the Chinese example a model for the reconstitution of war-ravaged Europe, Hu flatly warned that “future growth and improvement will not be brought about by returning to the spiritualistic ideals of the East” (Hu Citation 1928 : 41). There was little, it seemed, that China had to offer the West.

Although Hu’s ( Citation 1928 ) essay was expressly directed at European writers, his real audience was almost certainly Chinese thinkers whom he dismissed as conservative. He bemoaned the fact that the despondence that drove the former to extol the civilization of the latter “already had the unfortunate effect of gratifying the vanity of Oriental apologists and thereby strengthening the hand of reaction in the East” ( Citation 1928 : 25). This was an old battle for Hu. His contribution to Beard’s collection was based on a piece he had written two years prior titled “Our attitude toward modern Western civilization” (我們對於西洋近代文明的態度), a similarly spirited defense of Western materialism, which itself extended from an earlier debate in which he had been embroiled (Hu Citation 1926 ).

The debate in question was from 1923 and concerned nothing less than the place of metaphysics in a positivist world. Framed in terms of “science and the philosophy of life” (科學與人生觀), it erupted when journalist Zhang Junmai 張君勱 (1887–1969) claimed in a well-publicized lecture at Tsinghua College that science in all its ostensible objectivity could not fully address the subjective problems of human life. The war of words that then ensued drew in many of China’s leading intellectuals. Hu readily entered the fray. To little surprise, he, who in 1922 had proposed that “the greatest need of mankind today is to apply the scientific method to the problem of human life,” came in strongly on the side of those defending science’s applicability to all spheres of human activity. In a series of writings thereafter, he began to lay out several major claims that we can see come together in the essay of 1928: that science was unapologetically materialist and mechanistic, that the material and the spiritual were in effect inseparable, and that material well-being was necessary for spiritual flourishing and civilizational advancement (Grieder Citation 1970 : 150–153, quote on 151).

Hu Shih’s reference to China’s tradition of invention stands out against this broader backdrop. Along with commending his forebearers for “deifying the creators of tools,” he notably conceded that China had been the point of origin for “a number of epoch-making tools of ancient civilization.” The problem, though, was not one of precedence but persistence. In his eyes, China had “failed to carry on that great tradition and is left behind in the stage of manual labor while the Western world has long entered the age of steam and electricity” (Hu Citation 1928 : 26–27). But there was hope yet. In Hu’s straight and singular conception of social development, the West and Japan were once stuck in the same way but had since been transformed by modern science and technology. As such, “it will be the same science and technology which will transform the whole East and bring China … into the world of modern civilizations,” he concluded (Hu Citation 1928 : 34). At a time when China seemed to lag far behind the world’s leading powers, the tradition of invention offered many Chinese the promise that they might once again come to master the latest scientific and technological tools that would enable them to close the gap.

Inventions were not just useful in and of themselves. Amid the heightened interstate competition of the times, they also served as yet another measure of national superiority. To historian David Edgerton, “the assumption that national economic and technological performance is determined by national rates of innovation” represented “an extreme and widespread form” of techno-nationalism (Edgerton Citation 2007 : 5). In 1916, Science (科學), the journal of the Science Society of China, published a piece surveying major inventions across the globe over the past fifty years. “Amongst those who have been flourishing in scientific discoveries worldwide, the first is America and next is Europe,” it observed. “Asia and Australia are unheard of,” it went on to note (“Jin wushi nian zhong zhi da faming” Citation 1916 : 809). Although not deploying civilizational terms, as Hu Shih had in his writings on such matters, the piece similarly delineated a geography of difference determined by inventive output.

Appended to the short article were two tables. With one on American inventions and the other on European inventions, this pair of tables listed discoveries by date and individual inventors and, in the European case, country of origin: the American one consisted of thirty-six items from George Westinghouse’s railway air break in 1869 to Frederick Winslow Taylor (of scientific management fame) and Maunsel White’s high-speed steel in 1901; the European one of twenty-eight from German chemists Carl Graebe and Carl Lieberman’s synthetic dye, alizarin, in 1869 to Italian electrical engineer Guglielmo Marconi’s radio transmission in 1900. The underlying logic linked inventions directly to the fortunes of nations. It offered explanation by means of enumeration. “Those who review these lists will realize that America’s wealth and prosperity are by no means unexpected,” the piece concluded (“Jin wushi nian zhong zhi da faming” Citation 1916 : 809). By this logic, then, regions and countries were gauged not so much by their possession or use of these various technologies but by their very invention of them.

Although inventories of inventions and inventors such as the ones found in the 1916 Science article were by no means common, the way that stories of national or civilizational progress might be narrated not only through the sequence of new contraptions but also through the succession of individuals credited for bringing them into being was hardly unusual. In China, the figure of the inventor came to particular prominence among the wider public around the time of the May Fourth movement, extoled as he (and he was always gendered male) was by Hu Shih and others for his contribution to the material advancement of society. In these times, the idealized image of the of the modern inventor was almost assuredly foreign and Western. Hu’s list of inventors, who “represent[ed] that which is most divine in man, namely, that creative intelligence which provides implements and makes civilization possible,” consisted of solely Euro-American names, from Galileo to Ford (Hu Citation 1928 : 27). Certainly, inventors such as James Watt and Nikola Tesla would have been familiar enough to most of the literate Chinese who followed the contemporary press, penned as these men were into universalizing genealogies of the modern moment. If the recent past had been rewritten by the introduction of new inventions, then these inventors were, in a sense, co-authors in the narrative of modernity.

In China as elsewhere, the most famous among this cast of characters would be the “Wizard of Menlo Park” Thomas Alva Edison (1847–1931). Edison and his inventions received much coverage across Chinese publications ranging from popular children’s magazines to leading science journals. Most of these accounts were biographical. They told stories of his precocious intellect, his inquisitive spirit, and, above all, his industrious nature. “While experimenting on the vote recorder [his first invention of note], he worked around the clock for five days in a row without even once taking a nap,” one article gushed (Shou Bai Citation 1926 : 1). All of the accounts fixated on his inventions, especially their sheer volume. Edison obtained more than 2,000 patents worldwide over the course of his life. On the basis of these inventions, an article in New Citizen (新民) would describe him upon his death in 1931 as “the most useful old geezer in the world” (Xiang Citation 1931 ).

To many Chinese, Edison represented not just individual accomplishment but also the promise of national wealth and power. “That the America of today has managed to attain its current splendor is due in no small part to the contributions of Edison,” one observer wrote in 1932. This cheerful picture stood in contrast to the dismal image of the then ongoing Japanese invasion of northeast China, the latest in a long string of crises that threatened the Chinese nation’s continued existence. “If we are able to produce even half an Edison, there would be a great degree of hope for the future of our country,” he concluded (Shao Citation 1932 : 118). Edison’s appeal had in this regard also lay in his alleged altruism. In one of several biographical essays published in Science following Edison’s passing, electrical engineer Xu Yingqi 許應期 (1899–1976) contended that although Edison left behind much wealth, his estate would have been considerably larger had he truly cared about profit and riches (Xu Citation 1932 : 1501). Public discourse dictated that the personal diligence and prodigious productivity that Edison embodied (and that others should try to emulate) were to mainly serve the public good, with the nation as the main beneficiary of such Edisonian exertions.

Even as Edison was upheld as the ideal of an inventor whose work served national interests, his name was frequently evoked as a designation for those who had shown themselves to be inventors of whom China might perhaps be proud. In the 1930s and 1940s, a number of “Chinese Edisons” made the news. One of the earliest was Luo Guorui 羅國瑞 (1861–?), an engineer who was among the first Chinese students to study in the United States through the short-lived Chinese Educational Mission (1872–1881). Luo spent over a decade developing a producer gas generated from waste material that could be burned as fuel. For this, one commentator claimed he was “worthy of being called China’s Edison of today” (Jie Citation 1933 ). This practice of designating local “Edisons” was not unique to China. Aside from the “Korean Edisons” studied by Jung Lee, as mentioned earlier, there was, for instance, the “Indian Edison” Shankar Abaji Bisey (1867–1935), who earned the moniker for his various inventions, most notably the Bhisotype, a typecaster that had been poised to revolutionize the printing industry but that failed to do so when funding to bring it to market fell through (Patel Citation 2019 ).

To the Chinese public, “Chinese Edisons” raised questions about who could be labeled a “scientist” and who could practice science. For some, they represented a more capacious understanding of scientific expertise that extended beyond established elite institutions. After all, Edison himself had not attended university, as commentators frequently noted. One, referencing that fact, went on to detail the accomplishments of a “Chinese Edison” by the name of Wang Renquan 王仞千. Wang had been a “country bumpkin through and through” who heard about the marvels of machines by word of mouth. Intrigued and determined to fashion such machines himself, he obtained several manuals, got someone to teach him how to read, and began experimenting with putting together devices that got more complex over time. Through years of trials and tinkering, this “scientist of peasant origins” (農民出生的科學家) (as he came to be nicknamed) eventually produced a steam engine, an electric generator, and a “truly locally made” telephone, among other contraptions (Ling Jiu Citation 1944 ).

Although but a handful would be recognized as “Edisons,” as Wang had been, many other Chinese similarly experimented with developing new technologies or replicating or improving existing ones. Some applied for patents to protect their products. The earliest modern patent law in China came into being in 1912 as the “Provisional Regulations on the Rewarding and Encouraging of Industrial Arts” (獎勵工藝品暫行章程). In the three plus decades that this law (in its original and revised forms) was in place, however, less than four hundred patents would be awarded (Wang and Xia Citation 1980 : 18). Yet this small number of patents need not mean a lack of inventions. Among other things, it might suggest that the adjudicating authorities did not inspire confidence that they would seriously persecute patent infringement.

Certain inventors, even successful ones, certainly chose to forego patent applications. For example, maverick entrepreneur Chen Diexian 陳蝶仙 (1879–1940), whose life and work historian Eugenia Lean has richly detailed, decided not to apply for a patent for the chemical-based foam fire extinguisher he invented. His claim in this instance was that the absence of a patent would allow others, with whom he planned to share his design, to emulate it (Lean Citation 2020 : 122). It is uncertain whether he genuinely intended this. It is, for example, possible that he reasoned that no one else had his capacity to actually manufacture the fire extinguisher as a profitable product (and so he could disseminate the design without worry) or that he thought of patents as generally inefficacious (and hence not worth applying for). Considering such instances alongside regular mentions of Chinese inventions in the popular press, we can, I think, safely assume that Chinese inventors were more active in those decades than patent numbers alone suggest.

Still, in spite of this, a somewhat curious phenomenon arose. The various inventions of the present were all too often overshadowed by those from the past. When it came to providing an account of their country’s technoscientific accomplishments, many Chinese would focus on ancient discoveries and established traditions rather than more contemporary developments. This was glaringly evident at an exhibition that was held in Shanghai in 1933 in conjunction with the Chicago World’s Fair. The 1933 world’s fair, which took place on the centennial of Chicago’s founding, had adopted “science” as its theme and set out to celebrate the corresponding “growth of science, and the dependence of industry on scientific research” over the past century ( Official Guide Citation 1933 : 11). The exhibition in Shanghai had been put on to showcase products from around China that were to be sent to Chicago “for people from all around the world to see” (He Kou Citation 1933 ).

One visitor to the Shanghai exhibition arrived with great anticipation, but left much disappointed. He noted that the items on display were mainly local specialty goods like “beautiful and fine Jiangxi porcelains,” “multicolored and attractive Fujian lacquerware,” and “good quality Hangzhou silk.” As he saw it, it was “completely baffling” that the organizers would choose not to feature new innovations such as an automobile powered by charcoal, which to him better represented China’s new “enterprising spirit.” If China insisted on forever using the same old specialty products like porcelain and silk as examples of its accomplishments, then foreigners might come to accuse it of just “frying up cold rice” (炒冷飯), he warned (He Kou Citation 1933 ). This pattern would, however, persist, particularly with the evocation of the “four great inventions.”

When Hu Shih wrote in 1928 of the “epoch-making tools of ancient civilization” that China was said to have given to the world, it is almost certain that he at least had in mind three of what would soon be known as the “four great inventions,” namely printing, the magnetic compass, and gunpowder. (Paper, as we will discuss below, was a subsequent addition.) For decades prior, these three discoveries had been brought up individually or as a group in discussions about China’s tradition of invention. At times, commentators also made mention of things like porcelain and silk as important products with distinctively Chinese origins. None of these other products would, however, receive the same level of recognition as the three in regard to global significance.

The main reason may have been because the designation of printing, the magnetic compass, and gunpowder as historically notable inventions had in fact preceded their attribution to Chinese ingenuity. The English philosopher Francis Bacon (1561–1626) is widely recognized as having singled out these three things as having been key to ushering in the modern age (Amelung Citation 2014 : 47). Writing in the Novum Organum in 1620, Bacon claimed that “printing, gunpowder, and the compass … have changed the appearance and state of the whole world … so that no empire, sect, or star, appears to have exercised a greater power and influence on human affairs than these mechanical discoveries” (cited in Valentine Citation 2012 : 47). This he did without awareness and hence acknowledgment that these inventions may have hailed from China.

The crediting of these three inventions to the Chinese came belatedly. After Bacon, the trio of “mechanical discoveries” continued to surface as artifacts of great importance in the writings of other Europeans. One memorable take came from the pen of Karl Marx: “Gunpowder blew the world of knighthood to pieces; the compass discovered the world market and established the colonies; and printing furnished Protestantism with the tools it required and paved the way for the regeneration of science in general” (cited in Elster Citation 1985 : 287). In his account, these three things served as catalysts for the passing of the old world and the coming together of a new one. Although Marx, too, did not link these inventions to the Chinese, a number of his contemporaries in the nineteenth century would. British diplomat John Francis Davis (1795–1890), the first president of the Hong Kong branch of the Royal Asiatic Society and the second governor of Hong Kong, commented in 1836 that one might justifiably believe the claim that “what are justly considered in Europe as three of the most important inventions or discoveries of modern times, the art of printing, the composition of gunpowder, and the magnetic compass, had their first origin in China” (Davis Citation 1836 : 211).

At the time, there were Chinese writers who advanced similar claims. They did not seem, though, to have regarded the three inventions as a set in the way that Bacon, Marx, Davis, and others had. Instead, they referred to each invention either by itself or alongside other novelties of supposed Chinese origin (“Chinese Origins of Western Inventions” Citation 1889 ). According to historian Galen Poor, the phrase “three great inventions” (三大發明) only appears in Chinese in 1909, showing up in the pages of a late Qing textbook on Western history (Poor Citation 2020 : 74). In the years that followed, the three inventions would be regularly bundled together, even as they were more forcefully put forward as evidence of China’s material contributions to the global past and present. “China invented such important things as the compass, printing, and gunpowder,” the “nation’s father” Sun Yat-sen 孫中山 (1866–1925) declared in a 1924 speech. “Foreign countries are as powerful as they are in this moment because they now know how to use them” (Sun Citation 1924 : 76).

Four great inventions, that spread through Europe at the beginning of the Renaissance, had a large share in creating the modern world. Paper and printing paved the way for the religious reformation and made possible popular education. Gunpowder levelled the feudal system and created citizen armies. The compass discovered America and made the world instead of Europe the theater of history. In all these inventions and others as well, China claims to have had a conspicuous part. The purpose of this present work is to investigate the truth of this claim in the one domain of printing. (Carter Citation 1931 : xix)

As it turns out, however, there was no actual mention of “four epoch-making Chinese inventions” in Clennell’s original. At one point, the text does, however, provide a list of objects that had purportedly been carried from China to Europe. These, according to Clennell, had served as the “material and mechanical scaffolding inside which the whole fabric of our modern Western life is built up.” Among them one can find, interspersed among other things, though not as a distinct set, paper, printing, the magnetic compass, and gunpowder (Clennell Citation 1917 : 166–167).

Carter’s characterization of the great inventions resembles closely that of Marx, with paper slipped in and paired with printing as discoveries that revolutionized the nature of knowledge and its dissemination. As to why he decided to add paper to the conventional three, one possibility is the general interest and established research at that time among both Chinese and foreigners in paper’s invention in China, credited to the figure of Cai Lun 蔡倫 from the early first millennium (Carter Citation 1925 : xx; Tyau Citation 1922 : 108). Another possibility is that he felt that he could not talk about printing, the subject of his study, without first discussing the paper on which text was printed. He would devote the very first chapter of the book to paper as “the most certain and the most complete of China’s inventions” (Carter Citation 1925 : 1). Footnote 2

Whatever the reason behind Carter’s decision (and in a way that he by no means could have anticipated), the term “four great inventions” would stick and come to stand for China’s tradition of invention. Carter himself unfortunately did not live to see the publication of his book, let alone witness its unexpected impact. He had joined the faculty of the Department of Chinese at Columbia University while researching and writing the book but took ill and passed away as it was in press (D. C. M. Citation 1931 : vii–xi). The Invention of Printing received generally glowing early reviews. Historian of science George Sarton, writing in Isis in 1926, described it as “irreproachable,” “judicious, clearly and forcibly written,” and “an everlasting monument to the author’s memory” (Sarton Citation 1926 : 372–373). When portions of it were translated into Chinese by historian, translator, and editor Xiang Da 向達 (1900–1966), it drew much scholarly attention (Carter Citation 1929 ). In an extended review of the book, famed sinologist Têng Ssu-yü 鄧嗣禹 (1906–1988) praised Carter for the way he structured and organized the narrative, while detailing numerous errors of fact or interpretation that stemmed mainly from a reliance on secondary sources over primary ones and a misreading of characters. Footnote 3 Still, Têng argued, “from an overall standpoint, [the book] can be regarded as a great work” (Têng Citation 1934 : 56). As historian Iwo Amelung has observed, The Invention of Printing , in translation, sparked off much research into the history of printing. More significantly, for our purposes, it also introduced the “four great inventions” as a phrase to the reading Chinese public (Amelung Citation 2003 : 245).

The notion of the “four great inventions” that had emerged out of preexisting discourses about a tradition of invention would, over time, become that tradition’s dominant referent. By the early 1950s, in the opening years of the new socialist period, the term “four great inventions” served the recognizable shorthand for China’s inventive past. “Our compass, gunpowder, paper, and printing—the four great inventions that all people know about—spread to the West and truly caused their civilization to take a giant step forward,” wrote Mao Zuoben 茅左本 in Our Ancestors’ Inventions and Discoveries (我們祖先的創造發明), a popular text from 1951. Footnote 4 On account of the extent of its history and the “experience of [its] working people,” he continued, the China of old boasted numerous scientific and technological achievements across multiple fields from astronomy and mathematics to hydraulic engineering and agricultural and industrial technologies, achievements he likened to “big, bright stars embedded, one after another, onto history” (Mao Citation 1951 : 3). The book then proceeds to delve into these, chapter by chapter, beginning with the “four great inventions.” In one of multiple reprints of this work, published in 1957, the author writes that the “laboring people” were now “carrying on our ancestors’ splendid tradition in science and technology,” resulting in, amid other things, discoveries and inventions “springing up like bamboo shoots springing up a spring rain” (Mao Citation 1957 : 2–3). The creativity of the “laboring people” that underlay those innovations was celebrated for a spell, as was keeping with the party’s idea of the “mass line” that bid leaders learn from the wisdom of ordinary people. But such innovations or other advances of the period would not, however, be folded into larger narratives of Chinese science and technology.

In 1980, at the dawn of China’s so-called reform era, physicist Qian Sanqiang 钱三强 (1913–1992), father of the Chinese nuclear program and then vice-president of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, published an article with several colleagues—Cang Xiaohe 仓孝和 (1923–1984), Xu Liangying 许良英 (1920–2013), Li Peishan 李佩珊 (1924–2004), and Du Shiran 杜石然 (b. 1929)—in Red Flag (紅旗), one of the party’s main publications. Based on the premise that the new era demanded that all cadres “take pains to study science and technology” and put together from drafts of lectures that Qian had delivered to the party’s central secretariat, this article surveyed scientific and technological developments across world history. Overall, the story that the authors told was a typical one. China, with its “four great inventions” and other technoscientific achievements, from the calculation of pi to the fashioning of earthquake detection instruments, occupied a position of world leadership in science and technology up to the sixteenth century. After that, however, it falls completely out of the narrative, even as Western Europe takes centerstage in the rise of modern science and technology (Qian et al. Citation 1980 ).

The preceding decades had, in fact, seen Chinese scientists, engineers, and other experts making gains on several fronts, such as the development of hybrid rice, the synthesis of crystalline bovine insulin, and the detonation of an atomic bomb (which Qian himself had a direct hand in) (Wu and Fan Citation 2020 : 544–550). To Qian and his colleagues, though, none of these accomplishments seemed worth mentioning. Their account stuck to a standard plotline that was tethered to China’s deeper past and its tradition of invention.

The tradition of invention, as I have laid out in this article, has had two main implications for how the history of science and technology in China has been told. The first is historiographic or how historians have taken science and technology as subjects of study in the Chinese past. For one thing, the inventive past was a central premise behind Joseph Needham’s monumental Science and Civilisation in China . Since its commencement in 1954, this multi-volume project has documented, in a way beyond any other scholarly endeavor, how scientific and technical activity had not only existed but even flourished in China before the industrial age. “Techniques fundamental in human history had grown from that soil,” Needham wrote in the first volume, “certain things yet valuable might be found there if it were dug into, and at the least, the whole history of science and techniques in China would be an essential element in any comprehensive history of world achievement” (Needham Citation 1954 : 10). His project went on to receive acclaim for drawing attention to various Chinese discoveries of global importance, starting with the “four great inventions.”

But, as this article has shown, the celebration of China’s purported tradition of invention stretched back decades, preceding Needham. He himself would credit Chinese biochemist Lu Gwei-Djen with transmitting to him the “message” passed down from her pharmacist father that “the ancient and medieval practitioners and artisans of China had known what they were doing much better than most sinologists are usually prepared to believe” (Needham 1954: 10). That is to say, there were already ongoing discourses about past Chinese inventiveness into which Needham would insert himself and for which he would become, over time, the most prominent of interlocutors.

The second implication of the arguments advanced in this article concerns a more general understanding of China in the global history of science and technology. As examples such as the 1980 article by Qian Sanqiang and his colleagues highlight, by excessively focusing on things like the “four great inventions” and other manifestations of a perceived tradition of invention, those who set out to narrate the history of science and technology in China have tended to either downplay or ignore other developments closer to the present that were deemed to not be of much if any comparable significance. The very fact that the bulk of the historical scholarship on science and technology in China in the early modern and modern periods has centered on recovering meaningful engagements by Chinese subjects with the scientific and the technological is itself a legacy of this phenomenon. But while the Chinese case stands out in that such accounts often have to be pulled out from under the shadow of temporally distant glories, the act of retrieving narratives of this sort is consistent with how the history of science and technology as a field has in general expanded its scope to be more attentive to the workings of science and technology in society that goes beyond just invention to also encompass maintenance and use (Edgerton Citation 2006 ; Vinsel and Russell Citation 2020 ).

Today, the tradition of invention remains influential in defining China’s position in the past, present, and future of science and technology. The way the “four great inventions” featured in the opening ceremony of the 2008 Beijing Olympics is perhaps the most recognizable example of this. In the decade or so since, China has made advances on several technoscientific fronts that have garnered international attention. In 2017, the Chinese media started making mention of “new four great inventions” (新四大发明). This refers to high-speed rail, mobile payments, e-commerce, and bike sharing, notable innovations of the current moment that did not originate in China but that have nevertheless found their greatest application and adaptation to date there (Jia Citation 2018 ). It reflects a broader consensus in China and beyond that the country is starting come into its own as a great power in the twenty-first century.

Yet the “old” “four great inventions” still hold much cultural sway. In 2019, Zheng Wenfeng 郑文锋 (b. 1969), a college professor at Chengdu University of Technology, was suspended from teaching for two years after a disagreement with some of his students over his claims that “there were no real innovations in ancient China” and that “the four great inventions were not pioneering on a global scale and didn’t form any productive forces or improve productivity.” Dissatisfied with his position, the students eventually reported him to the university authorities, which led to his suspension (Feng Citation 2019 ).

The tradition of invention has always been intertwined with nationalist sentiment. What is interesting here is that in the early twentieth century, this was embraced amid what had been understood to be an absence of technoscientific achievements, whereas in the early twenty-first century, it was still held on to tightly in spite of a recognized abundance of such accomplishments with China’s rise. And this brings up a question with which we will close: If one’s eyes are too firmly fixed on the past, how might they truly see the future?

I would like to thank Sean Hsiang-lin Lei, Eram Alam, Warwick Anderson, Fa-ti Fan, Dong-Won Kim, Nicole Nelson, Sigrid Schmalzer, Grace Shen, Jongsik Yi, and Zuoyue Wang, who participated in the 2019 “Mr. Science, May Fourth, and Modern China” workshop at Harvard University, where this paper was first presented. I am also grateful to Hsiao-Pei Yen, my shí-ken-sil working group, and the two anonymous reviewers for helpful feedback on earlier drafts and to Wen-Hua Kuo, Yi-Tien Hsu, and Hui-Hsi Chuang of EASTS for ushering this article and the rest of our special issue through to publication.

Correction Statement

This article has been republished with minor changes. These changes do not impact the academic content of the article.

Notes on contributors

Victor seow.

Victor Seow is a historian of technology, science, and industry, specializing in China and Japan and in histories of energy and work. He is the author of Carbon Technocracy: Energy Regimes in Modern East Asia (2021) and is currently assistant professor of the history of science at Harvard University.

1 There are few issues as enduring in the history of technology as a field than the question of technological determinism. For one important set of takes, see Smith and Marx ( Citation 1994 ).

2 According to Tsien Tsuen-Hsuin, who wrote the volume on paper and printing in Joseph Needham’s Science and Civilisation in China series, Carter’s account of paper was “still an authority on its dissemination westward” ( Citation Tsien 1985: 14).

3 To give but one example, Teng points out that Carter translates, on page 162 page, the phrase『故人以藏書為貴』as “The keeping of books was considered a thing that required wealth,” which is a misreading of the character 貴 (“dear” or “valued” in this context) (Têng Citation 1934 : 55).

4 This text had originally been serialized in the illustrated magazine Science Pictorial (科學畫報) and was reprinted several times over the next decade or so with various changes that, as Marc Andre Matten and Rui Kunze put it, “register the changing and sometimes contradicting official discourses on knowledge production, standards, and definitions of ‘science’ as well as their associated political and social concerns” (Matten and Kunze Citation 2021 : xv).

• Adas, Michael. 1989. Machines as the Measure of Men: Science, Technology, and Ideologies of Western Dominance . Ithaca, NY: Cornell University Press.   Google Scholar
• Amelung, Iwo. 2003. “Die ‘vier grossen Erfindungen’: Selbstzweifel und Selbstbestätigung in der chinesischen Wissenschafts- und Technikgeschichtsschreibung.” In Selbstbehauptungsdiskurse in Asien: China – Japan – Korea , edited by Iwo Amelung, Matthias Koch, Joachim Kurtz, Eun-Jeung Lee, and Sven Saalar, 243–274. München: Iudicium.   Google Scholar
• Amelung, Iwo. 2014. “Historiography of Science and Technology in China: The First Phase.” In Science and Technology in Modern China, 1880s–1940s , edited by Jing Tsu and Benjamin A. Elman, 39–65. Leiden: Brill.   Google Scholar
• Beard, Charles A., ed. 1928. Whither Mankind: A Panorama of Modern Civilization . New York: Longmans, Green, and Co.   Google Scholar
• Bud, Robert, and Morag Shiach. 2018. “Being Modern: Introduction.” In Being Modern: The Cultural Impact of Science in the Early Twentieth Century , edited by Robert Bud, and Morag Shiach, 1–20. London: UCL Press.   Google Scholar
• Carter, Thomas Francis. 1925. The Invention of Printing in China and Its Spread Westward . New York: Columbia University Press.   Google Scholar
• Carter, Thomas Francis. 1929. “Zhongguo yinshua shu zhi faming ji qi chuanru Ouzhou kao” 中國印刷術之發明及其傳入歐洲考 [The Invention of Printing in China and Its Spread Westward], translated by Xiang Da 向達. Beiping beihai tushuguan yuekan 《北平北海圖書館月刊》 2 (2): 9–23.   Google Scholar
• Carter, Thomas Francis. 1931 [1925]. The Invention of Printing in China and Its Spread Westward . New York: Columbia University Press.   Google Scholar
• “Chinese Claims to Inventions.” 1888. The North China Herald, June 9.   Google Scholar
• “Chinese Origins of Western Inventions.” 1889. The North China Herald, January 18.   Google Scholar
• Clennell, W. J. 1917. The Historical Development of Religion in China . New York: E. P. Dutton.   Google Scholar
• Cohen, Paul A. 2003. China Unbound: Evolving Perspectives on the Chinese Past . New York: Routledge.   Google Scholar
• D. C. M. 1931. “Thomas Francis Carter.” In The Invention of Printing in China and Its Spread Westward , by Thomas Francis Carter, vii–xii. New York: Columbia University Press.   Google Scholar
• Davis, John Francis. 1836. The Chinese: A General Description of the Empire of China and Its Inhabitants . London: Charles Knight.   Google Scholar
• Edgerton, David. 2006. The Shock of the Old: Technology and Global History Since 1900 . London: Profile Books.   Google Scholar
• Edgerton, David E. H. 2007. “The Contradictions of Techno-Nationalism and Techno-Globalism: A Historical Perspective.” New Global Studies 1 (1): 1–32.   Google Scholar
• Elster, Jon. 1985. Making Sense of Marx . Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.   Google Scholar
• Feng, Jiayun. 2019. “College Professor Suspended for Diminishing China’s ‘Four Great Inventions.’” Sup China, August 28. https://supchina.com/2019/08/28/college-professor-suspended-for-diminishing-chinas-four-great-inventions/ .   Google Scholar
• Grieder, Jerome B. 1970. Hu Shih and the Chinese Renaissance: Liberalism in the Chinese Revolution, 1917–1937 . Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Press.   Google Scholar
• He Kou. 1933. “Canguan Zhibo wei zhanhui zhihou.” Shenbao, March 9.   Google Scholar
• Hu Shi 胡適. 1926. “Women duiyu Xiyang jindai wenming de taidu” 我們對於西洋近代文明的態度 [Our Attitude Toward Modern Western Civilization]. Xinghua 《興華》 23 (30): 8–19.   Google Scholar
• Hu Shih. 1928. “The Civilizations of the East and the West.” In Whither Mankind: A Panorama of Modern Civilization , edited by Charles A. Beard, 25–41. New York: Longmans, Green, and Co.   Google Scholar
• Jia Kaer 賈卡爾 (Pratik Jakhar). “BBC shishi hecha: jiujing shi shui tichu le Zhongguo ‘xin si da faming’” BBC事實核查：究竟是誰提出了中國「新四大發明」 [BBC Fact Check: Who was it Who Proposed China’s ‘New Four Great Inventions’]. BBC Monitoring, April 3. https://www.bbc.com/zhongwen/trad/chinese-news-43624852 .   Google Scholar
• Jie 潔. 1933. “Luo Guorui bukui wei jinri Zhongguo de Aidisheng” 羅國瑞不愧為今日中國的愛迪生 [Luo Guorui is Worthy to be Called China’s Edison of Today]. Shanghai shi zhi guohuo shiye 《上海市之國貨事業》 1: 3–9.   Google Scholar
• “Jin wu-shi nian zhong zhi faming” 近五十年中之大發明 [The major inventions of the past fifty years]. Kexue《科學》 2:7 (1916): 809–810.   Google Scholar
• Lean, Eugenia. 2020. Vernacular Industrialism in China: Local Innovation and Translated Technologies in the Making of a Cosmetics Empire, 1900–1940 . New York: Columbia University Press.   Google Scholar
• Lee, Jung. 2013. “Invention Without Science: ‘Korean Edisons’ and the Changing Understanding of Technology in Colonial Korea.” Technology and Culture 54 (4): 784–814.   Web of Science ® Google Scholar
• Lin Yutang 林語堂. 1930. “Jiqi yu jingshen” 機器與精神 [Machine and Spirit]. Zhongxuesheng 《中學生》 2: 1–11.   Google Scholar
• Ling Jiu 齡九. 1944. “Zhongguo de Aidisheng: Wang Renqian: yi wei nongmin chushen de kexuejia” 中國的愛迪生:王仞千:一位農民出身的科學家 [A Chinese Edison: Wang Renqian: A Scientist from a Peasant Background]. Tianjia ban yuekan《田家半月報》 11 (1/2): 19–21.   Google Scholar
• Mao Zuoben 茅左本. 1951. Women zuxian de chuangzao faming 《我們祖先的創造發明》 [Our Ancestors’ Inventions and Discoveries] . Shanghai: Laodong chubanshe.   Google Scholar
• Mao Zuoben 茅左本. 1957 [1951]. Women zuxian de chuangzao faming 《我們祖先的創造發明》 [Our Ancestors’ Inventions and Discoveries] . Shanghai: Shanghai renmin chubanshe.   Google Scholar
• Matten, Marc André, and Rui Kunze. 2021. Knowledge Production in Mao-Era China: Learning from the Masses . Lanham, MD: Lexington Books.   Google Scholar
• Needham, Joseph. 1954. Science and Civilisation in China , Vol. 1, Introductory Orientations. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.   Google Scholar
• Official Guide: Book of the Fair. 1933. Chicago: A Century of Progress.   Google Scholar
• Patel, Dinyar. 2019. “The Transnational Career of the ‘Indian Edison’: Shankar Abaji Bhisey and the Nationalist Promotion of Scientific Talent.” In Bombay Before Mumbai: Essays in Honour of Jim Masselos , edited by Prashant Kidambi, Manjiri Kamat, and Rachel Dwyer, 239–262. Oxford: Oxford University Press.   Google Scholar
• Poor, Galen M. 2020. “The Four Great Inventions: Technology, History, and Nationalism in Modern China.” Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Wisconsin–Madison.   Google Scholar
• Qian Sanqiang, Cang Xiaohe, Xu Liangying, Li Peishan, and Dushiran. 1980. “A Brief Account of Scientific and Technological Developments.” Red Flag, August 1. Translated and reproduced in the Joint Publications Research Services.   Google Scholar
• Ren Hongjuan 任鴻雋. 1915. “Shuo Zhongguo wu kexue zhi yuanyin” 說中國無科學之原因 [On Why It is Said That China Lacks Science]. Kexue 《科學》 1 (1): 8–13.   Google Scholar
• Sarton, George. 1926. “Review of The Invention of Printing in China and Its Spread Westwards by Thomas Francis Carter.” Isis 8 (2): 361–373.   Google Scholar
• Shao Linsheng 邵霖生. 1932. “Da faming jia Aidisheng de yi sheng” 大發明家愛迪生的一生 [The Life of the Great Inventor Edison]. Qingnian jinbu 《青年進步》 150: 113–119.   Google Scholar
• Shou Bai 受百. 1926. “Da faming Aidisheng zhuanlüe” 大發明愛迪生傳略 [A Biographical Sketch of Great Invent(or) Edison]. Shanghai zhongshanghui yuebao 《上海总商会月报》 6 (7): 1–7.   Google Scholar
• Smith, Merritt Roe, and Leo Marx, eds. 1994. Does Technology Drive History? The Dilemma of Technological Determinism . Cambridge, Mass.: MIT Press.   Google Scholar
• Sun Zhongshan 孙中山. 2016 (1924). “Sanmin zhuyi di wu jiang” 三民主义第六讲 [Three Principles of the People, Sixth Speech]. In Sun Zhongshan wenji 《孙中山文集》 [Collected Writings of Sun Yat-sen], compiled by Meng Qingpeng, 69–78. Beijing: Tuanjie chubanshe.   Google Scholar
• Têng Ssu-yü 鄧嗣禹. 1934. “Zhongguo yinshua shu zhi faming ji Xichuan” 中國印刷術之發明及西傳 [The Invention of Printing in China and Its Spread Westward]. Tushu pinglun 《圖書評論》 2 (11): 36–57.   Google Scholar
• Tsien, Tsuen-Hsuin. 1985. Science and Civilisation in China , Vol. 5, Chemistry and Chemical Technology, Pt. 1, Paper and Printing. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.   Google Scholar
• Tyau, Min-Ch'ien T. Z. 1922. China Awakened . New York: Macmillan.   Google Scholar
• Valentine, Patrick M. 2012. A Social History of Books and Libraries from Cuneiform to Bytes . Lanham: Scarecrow Press.   Google Scholar
• Vinsel, Lee, and Andrew L. Russell. 2020. The Innovation Delusion: How Our Obsession with the New Has Disrupted the Work That Matters Most . New York: Currency.   Google Scholar
• Wang Jiafu 王家福 and Xia Shuhua 夏叔华. 1980. “Zhuanlifa jianlun” 专利法简论 [A Brief Discussion of Patent Law]. Faxue yanjiu 《法学研究》 23: 17–25.   Google Scholar
• Wang Zhixin 王治心. 1930. “Zhongguo gudai kexue shang de faming” 中國古代科學上的發明 [The Scientific Discoveries of Ancient China]. Tongze banyuekan 《同澤半月刊》 4 (7): 55–64.   Google Scholar
• Wu, Shellen Xiao, and Fa-ti Fan. 2020. “China.” In Cambridge History of Science, Vol. 8, Modern Science in National, Transnational, and Global Context , edited by Hugh Richard Slotten, Ronald L. Numbers, and David N. Livingstone, 521–554. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.   Google Scholar
• Xiang 薌. 1931. “Ming deng xi le! Shijie shang zui youyong de laotouzi Aidisheng shishi” 明燈熄了！：世界上最有用的老頭子愛迪生逝世 [A Bright Lamp Extinguished! The Passing of Edison, the Most Useful Old Geezer in the World]. Xin min 《新民》 20 (4): 4–7.   Google Scholar
• Xu Yingqi 許應期. 1932. “Aidisheng ji qi faming” 愛迪生及其發明 [Edison and His Inventions]. Kexue 《科學》 16 (10): 1430–1504.   Google Scholar
• Back to Top

Related research

People also read lists articles that other readers of this article have read.

Recommended articles lists articles that we recommend and is powered by our AI driven recommendation engine.

Cited by lists all citing articles based on Crossref citations. Articles with the Crossref icon will open in a new tab.

• People also read
• Recommended articles

To cite this article:

Download citation, your download is now in progress and you may close this window.

• Choose new content alerts to be informed about new research of interest to you
• Easy remote access to your institution's subscriptions on any device, from any location
• Save your searches and schedule alerts to send you new results
• Export your search results into a .csv file to support your research

Login or register to access this feature

Register now or learn more

Chinese Writing

Ancient Chinese Writing evolved from the practice of divination during the Shang Dynasty (1600-1046 BCE). Some theories suggest that images and markings on pottery shards found at Ban Po Village are evidence of an early writing system but this claim has been challenged repeatedly.

Ban Po was occupied c. 4500-3750 BCE and was discovered by workmen digging a foundation for a factory in 1953 CE. Ceramic shards uncovered at the site have been classified into 27 distinct categories of image/sign which suggest to some scholars an early language. The opposing view is that these images are simply marks of ownership, comparable to making an X on a document to sign one's name, and cannot be considered an actual written language. The majority of recent scholarship agrees that writing evolved during the Shang Dynasty and developed from there. Scholar Patricia Buckley Ebrey expresses the consensus on this:

Exactly when writing was first used in China is not known since most writing would have been done on perishable materials like wood, bamboo, or silk . Symbols or emblems inscribed on late neolithic pots may be early forms of Chinese graphs. Early Shang bronzes sometimes have similar symbols cast into them. The earliest evidence of full sentences is found on the oracle bones of the late Shang. From these divinatory inscriptions, there can be no doubt that the Shang used a language directly ancestral to modern Chinese and moreover used a written script that evolved into the standard Chinese logographic writing system still in use today. (26-27)

Once writing was developed by the Chinese it had a significant impact on the culture . Ebrey writes, "In China, as elsewhere, writing once adopted has profound effects on social and cultural processes(26)." The bureaucracy of China came to rely on written records and, culturally, expression of personal thoughts and feelings was made possible through poetry and prose, creating some of the greatest literature in the world.

Oracle Bones

Oracle bones were the shoulder blades of oxen or the plastrons of turtles, scraped and cleaned, which were inscribed with marks for divination. The ancient Chinese were very concerned with knowing the future and would go to diviners for guidance on making decisions. The diviner (someone who today would be called a 'psychic' or a 'medium') would carve the person's question into the bone and then heat it with a hot poker or place it near a fire. When the bone would crack, the lines formed would be interpreted to answer the person's question.

An example of this might be whether the king should go hunting on a certain day. The diviner would carve the name of the king asking the question and the date it was asked. They would then carve the topic of the question (Hunting) and the specific question (Should king ___ go hunting tomorrow). The bone would then be heated, crack, and interpreted. Afterward, the prognostication would be inscribed (Yes, the king should go hunting tomorrow) and, later, the verification that the prediction was correct (King went hunting and was successful). Oracle bones were consulted by everyone in the Shang period from the lowest class to the highest.

Oracle bones continued in use through the Zhou Dynasty (1046-226 BCE) when they were replaced by another form of divination known as the I-Ching (The Book of Changes) which relied on a written text of hexagrams to interpret the meaning of a pattern made by the questioner throwing yarrow sticks onto a table. With both oracle bones and the I-Ching, the spirits of one's ancestors were thought to be influencing the divination and communicating directly with the diviner.

Evolution of Script

From these early beginnings, Chinese script evolved. These scripts were:

Jiaguwen - the earliest form of writing on Oracle bones used c. 1600-1000 BCE. This script was pictographic, meaning the inscription represented an object linked to a concept. Example: if one wanted to write "Should the king go hunting tomorrow?" one would carve an image of the king with his bow and sunrise.

Dazhuan - known as Greater Seal script, developed c. 1000-700 BCE. This was also a pictographic script but had many more characters and was more refined. The images were inscribed on bronze and probably wood.

Xiaozhuan - known as Lesser Seal script, developed c. 700 BCE and is still in use today. This script was less pictographic and more logographic, meaning the symbols represented concepts themselves, not objects. Example: if one now wanted to write "Should the king go hunting tomorrow?" one would inscribe the image for the king and the sign which represented 'hunting' and 'tomorrow'.

Lishu - known as Clerky Script, was developed c. 500 BCE and used during the Qin Dynasty (221 - 206 BCE) and Han Dynasty (206 BCE - 220 CE) extensively. Lishu grew out of the need for complete documentation of government affairs and, as the name indicates, was used by clerks in their work in governmental bureaucracy. Sentences were written on bamboo scrolls tied together with string. When one reads about emperor Shi Huangti (259-210 BCE) of the Qin Dynasty burning books, these are the kinds of books he destroyed. Paper was not invented until the Han Dynasty in 105 CE.

In addition to these scripts there also developed the cursive scripts used in poetry and calligraphy. These are: Kaishu (Standard Script) Xingshu (Running Script), and Caoshu (Grass Script). Caoshu developed during the Qin Dynasty while Kaishu and Xing during the Han period.

As one can see, Chinese writing developed from pictures of objects which represented concepts to signs representing the concepts themselves. This development changed Chinese society and culture dramatically and also affected the way it would develop in the future. Ebrey explains:

It is essentially accidental that the Shang developed a logographic script rather than a phonetic script like most of those that became dominant elsewhere in Eurasia. This accident, however, had momentous consequences for the way Chinese civilization developed. It shaped the nature of the elite: the difficulty of mastering this script made those expert in it an elite possessed of rare but essential skills. (28)

On the positive side, this meant that as Chinese writing became more and more a part of Chinese trade , the culture spread to neighboring regions. As Ebrey notes:

Because the Chinese logographic script did not change to reflect differences in pronunciation, the literate elite easily identified with others whose writings they could read, including predecessors who lived many centuries earlier and contemporaries whose spoken languages they could not comprehend. Just as crucially, this script also affected the processes of cultural expansion and assimilation. People on the fringes of Chinese culture who learned to read Chinese for pragmatic reasons of advancing or defending their interests were more effectively drawn into Chinese culture than they would have been if China had had a phonetic script. Reading and writing for them could not be easily detached from the body of Chinese texts imbued with Chinese values, making it difficult for them to use their literacy to articulate the vision of a local population defined in opposition to China. (28)

The logographic script made a much more dramatic impression on readers than a phonetic script because people were not just reading words on a page but absorbing concepts directly as they read. On the negative side, the creation of a literate elite meant class divisions where those who could read and write were considered more valuable members of society than those who could not. This class distinction characterized Chinese society and history up until 1949 CE when Mao Tse Tung established the People's Republic of China largely in an effort to remedy social inequality.

Chinese script was adopted by Japan , Korea , Vietnam, became the basis for Khitan Script (Mongolia), Jurchen Script (of the Manchus), and the Yi Script of the indigenous people of Yunnan Province which differs from traditional Chinese script. It further influenced other nations of the region as seen in the Tangut Script of Tibet. Script enabled the Chinese, and then those of other nations, not only to communicate and keep records but also to create some of the most memorable works in world literature.

Subscribe to topic Related Content Books Cite This Work License

Bibliography

• Ancient Scripts: Chinese Script by Lawrence Lo , accessed 1 Dec 2016.
• Benn, C. Daily Life in Traditional China"Daily Life Through History" Series). Greenwood, 2001.
• Ebrey, P. B. The Cambridge Illustrated History of China. Cambridge University Press, 2010.
• Tanner, H. M. China: A History Volume I, From Neolithic Cultures through the Great Qing Empire. Hackett Publishing, 2010.
• Wintle, J. The Timeline History of China. Barnes & Noble Books, 2005.

About the Author

Translations

We want people all over the world to learn about history. Help us and translate this definition into another language!

Related Content

Shang Dynasty

Ancient China

Qin Dynasty

Han Dynasty

Zhou Dynasty

Free for the world, supported by you.

World History Encyclopedia is a non-profit organization. For only $5 per month you can become a member and support our mission to engage people with cultural heritage and to improve history education worldwide.

Recommended Books

Cite This Work

Mark, E. (2016, April 07). Chinese Writing . World History Encyclopedia . Retrieved from https://www.worldhistory.org/Chinese_Writing/

Chicago Style

Mark, Emily. " Chinese Writing ." World History Encyclopedia . Last modified April 07, 2016. https://www.worldhistory.org/Chinese_Writing/.

Mark, Emily. " Chinese Writing ." World History Encyclopedia . World History Encyclopedia, 07 Apr 2016. Web. 25 Sep 2024.

License & Copyright

Submitted by Emily Mark , published on 07 April 2016. The copyright holder has published this content under the following license: Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike . This license lets others remix, tweak, and build upon this content non-commercially, as long as they credit the author and license their new creations under the identical terms. When republishing on the web a hyperlink back to the original content source URL must be included. Please note that content linked from this page may have different licensing terms.

• Latino History
• Youth Engagement, Voting, and Election
• Collections

Smithsonian Welcomes Papers of the Late Jerome H. Lemelson

Papers Documenting Lemelson’s Inventions Join the National Museum of American History’s Archival Collections

The Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History has accepted the donation of the papers of the late inventor Jerome H. Lemelson, a gift from the Dorothy Lemelson Trust. The Jerome H. Lemelson Papers, spanning 1943–2003, consist of 363 cubic feet of papers documenting Lemelson’s inventions, his creative process, the patent process and the legal process by which he secured his rights. Lemelson’s patents cover a wide range of topics—toys, medicine and technology. In addition to documenting Lemelson’s inventions, the papers also document his work defending the rights of independent inventors by working to reform patent law and the legal system. The collection includes invention notebooks, patents, patent applications, correspondence, subject reference files, licensing agreements, patent litigation files, newspaper clippings, sketches, ephemera and audio-visual materials.

The invention notebooks form the core of the collection, providing detailed descriptions of possible new inventions and ideas spanning 46 years. Lemelson’s notebooks contain notes about meetings with colleagues, variations on patent ideas, outlines of patent specifications and related sketches. Notebook entries are often dated and signed by Lemelson and witnesses to whom he disclosed his ideas. The notebooks present a comprehensive overview of his ideas and are significant to understanding his creative process and how his ideas changed or did not change over time.

“We are deeply honored to receive the Jerome H. Lemelson Papers, a collection that encapsulates the boundless creativity and ingenuity of one of America's most prolific inventors,” said Anthea M. Hartig, the museum’s Elizabeth MacMillian Director. “This archive not only documents the vast range of Lemelson's inventions but also provides invaluable insights into the innovative spirit that has driven technological progress over the decades. By preserving and sharing these materials, we continue our mission to inspire future generations of inventors and innovators.”

Lemelson was one of the most prolific American inventors of all time, and in the sheer range of his ideas—from cutting-edge medical and industrial technologies to novelties, gadgets and toys—undoubtedly one of the most versatile. Lemelson holds 606 patents documenting a wide range of inventions, from toys to “machine visioning.” The portfolio of products covered by his patents is voluminous, including, for example, components in the Walkman, the VCR, the fax machine and the camcorder. His background in aeronautical and industrial engineering served him well, allowing him to understand increasingly complex technologies, to see their potential and to exploit them. For example, Lemelson’s machine visioning involved a camera to inspect items on an assembly line, compare them with a digital image stored in its memory and determine whether they are defective. He designed computer-controlled machine tools used in automated, flexible manufacturing systems that let an assembly line produce different products at the same time. The audio-cassette mechanism he developed and licensed to Sony became a standard part of cassette players.

The Jerome H. Lemelson Papers join a significant body of archival collections that document independent inventors that include the Earl S. Tupper Papers, Charlotte Cramer Sachs Papers, the Brannock Device Company Records, the Marion O’Brien Donovan Papers, the Patricia Bath Papers and the Robert W. Kearns Papers, to name a few. The collection is available for research in the Archives Center .

About the Lemelson Center

The Smithsonian’s Lemelson Center engages, educates and empowers the public to participate in technological, economic and social change. The center undertakes historical research, develops educational initiatives, creates exhibitions and hosts public programming to advance new perspectives on invention and innovation and to foster interactions between the public and inventors. The Lemelson Hall of Invention and Innovation, featuring the Draper Spark!Lab and “Change Your Game”/“Cambia tu juego,” is a signature part of the National Museum of American History’s 45,000-square-foot space centered on the theme of innovation. For more information, visit the center’s website. For Smithsonian information, the public may call (202) 633-1000.

About The Lemelson Foundation

The Lemelson Foundation was established by Jerome and Dorothy Lemelson in 1992 with the vision of cultivating future generations of inventors to create a better world. The foundation focuses on nurturing invention-based businesses that are developing unique, physical products to address global and community challenges and are destined for high growth. After more than 30 years of giving, the foundation continues to be led by the Lemelson family. To date, they have provided more than $350 million in support of our mission.

About the National Museum of American History

Through incomparable collections, rigorous research and dynamic public outreach, the National Museum of American History seeks to empower people to create a more just and compassionate future by examining, preserving and sharing the complexity of our past. The museum, located on Constitution Avenue N.W., between 12th and 14th streets, is open Friday through Tuesday between 10 a.m. and 5:30 p.m. Admission is free, and passes are not required. The doors of the museum are always open online and the virtual museum continues to expand its offerings, including online exhibitions, K–12 educational materials and programs. The public can follow the museum on social media on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook. For more information, visit the museum’s website. For Smithsonian information, the public may call (202) 633-1000.

Media only:         

Laura Havel        (202) 633-3312; [email protected]  

Melinda Machado    (202) 261-1266; [email protected]  

Vanessa Briseño    (503) 827-8910; [email protected]