The Great Wall
Who is the first emperor of the Qin Dynasty began construction of the wall in 221 BCE to protect against northern invaders?
Qin Shi Huangdi
This luxury fabric was so valuable that the Chinese kept its production process a secret for hundreds of years.
silk
This invention, originally used for fireworks, was eventually adapted for use in military weapons
gunpowder
While many think of the wall as ancient, most of the sections standing today were actually built by this later dynasty starting in the 1400s.
Ming Dynasty
This person is often called the "Father of the Silk Road" after his 138 BCE mission to find allies for the Han emperor.
Zhang Qian
To ensure only the most knowledgeable people became government officials, candidates had to pass difficult exams based on this philosophy.
Confucianism
Approximately one-fourth of the "wall" isn't man-made at all, but instead consists of these two types of natural barriers.
Mountains and rivers
This central trading point in modern-day China served as the major meeting place where the Eastern and Western Silk Roads converged
Kashgar
This medical practice, which involves the use of needles to balance the body's health, is still used in traditional Chinese medicine today.
acupuncture
Soldiers stationed in towers along the wall used these two types of visual signals to quickly communicate news of an invasion to the capital.
smoke signals and fire
This Roman Emperor was so concerned that silk was making his people "weak" that he passed a law forbidding men from wearing it.
Emperor Tiberius
The ancient Chinese created this device, known as a seismograph, for the specific purpose of detecting these natural disasters.
earthquakes
Despite the wall's massive scale, the Han Dynasty sometimes resorted to this tactic—sending a specific luxury good—to stop nomadic groups from attacking.
Bribing them with silk
This specific type of camel was preferred for desert travel because of its double eyelids and nostrils that could close against sandstorms.
Bactrian camel
Before the invention of the compass, the Chinese discovered they could magnetize iron needles by rubbing them against this naturally magnetic rock.
lodestone