In the Song cities of Kaifeng and Hangzhou, the wealthy could buy exotic items like rhinoceros horn from Bengal and ivory from Africa. Street shops stayed open until 2 am. The tradespeople’s stalls offered knife sharpening, pot mending, coffin making and tailoring. Crowds gathered to listen to fortune tellers, watch magicians and consult healers.
SkillBuilder discussion Using historical sources 1. What can the fine silk robes of these wealthy Song women tell us about the social and economic status of women in the Song dynasty? 2. How might the role and expectations of wealthy women in Song society differ from those of peasant women? 3. Consider the setting and activities surrounding these women. What aspects of Song dynasty culture and daily life are reflected in this image? DID YOU KNOW? Anyone who wanted to appear before the emperor had to sink to their knees and knock their head nine times on the floor to show their obedience.
SOURCE2 A group of wealthy Song women dressed in their fine silk robes
Song cities were built in the shape of a square and had thick defensive walls. People entered the city through guarded gates and walked down straight streets that crisscrossed from north to south and east to west. Houses were grouped into wards , enclosed by another protective wall that was locked every night. In cities teeming with people, the government was responsible for community health and hygiene. Garbage was regularly removed from the streets and transported on barges to dumps in the countryside. Every day the ‘pouring men’ came to cart away the city’s human waste, which was dried and used as fertiliser for the local vegetable gardens. 10.3.2 Home and the Chinese family Traditional life in China was in stark contrast to the life of the nomadic Mongol warriors. The Chinese way of life centred on agriculture. Every member of the Chinese peasant family was needed to work on farming tasks such as draining and ploughing fields, fertilising crops and irrigating. Most people living in traditional Chinese communities were bound to the land for their survival. Traditional Chinese culture emphasised a person’s duty to their family, including dead ancestors who were continually honoured through religious rituals. Loyalty to the family was more important than loyalty to the government. The father was the head of the family and made all the decisions. Wives and children were expected to obey. During the Song dynasty, China had many small villages where between 200 and 400 people lived in family cottages made from mud bricks. Chinese families also lived on boats, called sampans, along
Jacaranda Humanities Alive 8 Victorian Curriculum Third Edition
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