ANCIENT HISTORY

The Bizarre and Dangerous World of Ancient Chinese Weight Loss

From a weight-loss dance to diets of cacti and musk, ancient Chinese had a variety of ways to keep themselves slim

ANCIENT HISTORY

How Ancient Chinese Scholars Celebrated Graduation

In the Tang dynasty, scholars celebrated the end of exams with food, bribes, and cosying up to officials

ARTS

Anti-War Poetry in Ancient China

Four ancient Chinese poets on human suffering amid turbulence and war

ANCIENT HISTORY

How Ancient Chinese Seniors Spent Their Retirement

Retirement from working wasn’t always bliss for ancient Chinese officials

TRADITIONAL CULTURE

Chinese Trees and Their Meanings

Symbolism of eight common trees in Chinese culture

ANCIENT HISTORY

Traffic Laws in Ancient China

Could you pass a 2,000-year-old Chinese driving test?

ANCIENT HISTORY

Nailed It: Why Long Fingernails Were All the Rage in Ancient China

The symbolism of long nails and nail guards, from Confucius to Empress Cixi

ANCIENT HISTORY

The “Designer” Bags of Ancient China

Centuries before Chanel and Hermès became status symbols, ancient Chinese could tell a person’s rank from the bag they carried

ANCIENT HISTORY

Ancient Ways to Beat the Summer Heat

Keeping cool with no electricity was no easy feat in ancient China

TRAVEL

The Ebb and Flow of the Grand Canal

How the Grand Canal turned Hangzhou from a backwater into one of the richest cities in the world

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