Squawking Through History: Parrots in Chinese Literature and Verse
From “Prime Minister Parrot” to the “Green-Coated Messenger,” parrots have been feisty feathered friends for centuries in Chinese literature
How Prophecies Were Key to Maintaining Power in Ancient China
How rulers and would-be rulers used and manipulated prophetic texts
How Ancient Chinese Got Their Hair Cut
Hair was almost sacred to some ancient Chinese, and hairdressers eventually cashed in
Ancient China’s Favorite Poisons
Tales of treachery behind four toxins from Chinese history
How Did Ancient Chinese Mourn the Deceased?
On Qingming Festival, here’s a look at some ancient Chinese mourning rituals, from costume and diet, to mourning periods and wedding bans
How Ancient Chinese Seniors Spent Their Retirement
Retirement from working wasn’t always bliss for ancient Chinese officials
Tales of “Tiger Women” from Ancient China
Ancient Chinese labeled tough, fierce women “tigresses”—they often had to deal with sexism and unruly husbands
The Strangest Deaths of Ancient Chinese Rulers
From falling into a toilet to being struck by lightning, these are the weirdest deaths ever to befall imperial Chinese rulers
Strangest Laws from Ancient China
From forbidding crying to enforcing fish-naming etiquette to ink-drinking punishments—these are the weirdest laws from Chinese history
How Ancient Chinese Buried the Living Along with the Dead
For centuries, Chinese funerals demanded living sacrifices to accompany the dead in the afterlife
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