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STEEP COMPETITION
A popular TV drama highlights the tea contests that emerged during the Tang Dynasty, flourished in the Song and helped inspire tea culture in Japan
A Reflection of History
Decorated bronze mirrors from the Tang Dynasty bore witness to the rise and fall of trade and governance, as well as ups and downs of the Silk Road
SOUL SEARCHERS
Dating back to the Neolithic age, an exquisitely painted ceramic vase topped with a sculpted human head offers clues to ideas about death and spirituality held among China’s earliest cultures
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IN THE NAME OF CHINA
A vessel from the Western Zhou Dynasty is the oldest known bronzeware with an inscription that includes the characters for China
Turning Dust into Glory
Ancient Chinese craftsmen created exquisite black ceramics with sophisticated manufacturing techniques that are still hard to reproduce
COINS AND CRASHES
From minting coins to controlling commodities, runaway inflation in ancient China laid bare the limits of imperial power