MetaFilter posts tagged with history and china

Lithographs from the Touchstone Studio

Abiezer — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 04:33:13 -0800

Envisioning Chinese Society in the Late Nineteenth Century: Words and Images from the Dianshizhai Pictorial Very nice online presentation of translated content from the famed nineteenth century Shanghai pictorial journal (China's first); Dianshizhai (点石斋画报) was modelled on Britain's Punch and produced as a supplement for Shen Bao subscribers. Flash is used so elements in the cartoons can be clicked for further information: a young woman repels a thief with martial derring-do; a customer bilks on the bill in a street eatery in Hangzhou; small-town society and politics with the muddle-headed magistrate; a non-performing temple bell offers a chance for sceptical commentary on religion; the gentlemanly pastime of cricket-fighting.

The Economist: The World in 2010

goodnewsfortheinsane — Sat, 14 Nov 2009 17:09:43 -0800

In 2010, Obama will have a miserable year, NATO may lose in Afghanistan, the UK gets a regime change, China needs to chill, India's factories will overtake its farms, Europe risks becoming an irrelevant museum, the stimulus will need an exit strategy, the G20 will see a challenge from the "G2", African football will unite Korea, conflict over natural resources will grow, Sarkozy will be unloved and unrivalled, the kids will come together to solve the world's problems (because their elders are unable), technology will grow ever more ubiquitous, we'll all charge our phones via USB, MBAs will be uncool, the Space Shuttle will be put to rest, and Somalia will be the worst country in the world. And so the Tens begin.

The Economist: The World in 2010. Previously: 2009, 2008, 2007. How did we do last time around? Guest contributions: President of the European Commission José Manuel Barroso lines up Europe's priorities President of Russia Dmitry Medvedev argues for dialogue and cooperation President of the Maldives Mohamed Nasheed wants his island nation to remain above water President of Indonesia Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono would like for Islam and the West to live in harmony President of South Africa Jacob Zuma says Africa should rise to the occasion Director-General of the World Health Organisation Margaret Chan predicts the development of the flu pandemic Managing director of the International Monetary Fund Dominique Strauss-Kahn explains how to prevent another crisis CEO of Yahoo! Carol Bartz believes business leaders should tap into the information flood Chairman of HSBC Stephen Green argues that the financial sector should welcome emerging economies CEO of Fiat Group and Chrysler Group Sergio Marchionne thinks greener cars require bolder action CEO/CTO of SpaceX Elon Musk says the private sector should handle space travel

... I go out at night and paint the stars.

Mitheral — Sun, 28 Jun 2009 10:30:32 -0800

Preserved in the cave excavations of Mogao and listing 1,339 stars the Dunhuang Star Chart is the oldest graphical star atlas known to exist. Dated to between 649 and 684 AD, it features two sections. The first consists of 26 diagrams of asterisms (including a recognizable Big Dipper and Orion) and the second contains 12 star maps each showing a 30 degree east-west section of sky in cylindrical projection plus an azimuthal projection circumpolar map. Star positions are accurate to within 1.5 degrees and it includes some stars in the southern sky. Previously 1,2,3. Via APOD.

Canadian War Posters

flibbertigibbet — Fri, 26 Jun 2009 03:29:12 -0800

Canadian War Poster Collection at McGill University. And if that doesn't strike your fancy, the list of digital collections include such time-honoured favourites as Expo '67, and the award-winner for unexpected collection, Gynaecology in Traditional Chinese Medicine. (previously)

Samuel Huntington Dies

Glibpaxman — Sat, 27 Dec 2008 17:12:34 -0800

Samuel Phillip Huntington, best known for his work "Clash of Civilizations," died on December 24. Previously on the blue (here, here, here, and here)

The Guqin Silk String Zither

netbros — Sun, 14 Dec 2008 14:17:32 -0800

Pronounced "chin" ("stringed instrument") or "goo chin" ("old stringed instrument"), the qin / guqin throughout its long history has been the musical instrument most prized by China's literati. They categorized it as one of their "four arts", collected it as an art object, praised its beautiful music, and built around it a complex ideology (compare its image in popular culture). No other instrument was described and illustrated in such detail, so often depicted in paintings, or so regularly mentioned in poetry. And its tablature documents the world's oldest detailed written instrumental music tradition, allowing both historically informed performance (requiring silk strings) of the many early melodies, and practical exploration of the relationship between Chinese music theory and music practice. The guqin silk string zither work of John Thompson. John Thompson is the best-known musician giving historically informed performances of early Chinese music for the guqin silk-string zither. After a college degree in Western musicology (early music) and graduate studies in ethnomusicology, he began in 1974 to study the modern guqin tradition from Sun YüCh'in in Taiwan. Since 1976 he has focused on early repertoire, personally reconstructing over 150 melodies published in 15th and 16th century handbooks. In 1992 the National Union of Chinese Musicians invited him to Beijing as the focus of a seminar on reconstructing music from the earliest surviving guqin handbook, Shen Qi Mi Pu (1425 CE). While based in Hong Kong as artistic consultant to the Festival of Asian Arts he performed throughout East Asia, and published seven CDs of his musical reconstructions as well as four books of music transcription. Since moving to New York in 2001 he has continued to perform, research and lecture on the guqin. His website is the most comprehensive English-language source of information on this instrument.

Adam Smith in Beijing

Abiezer — Sun, 09 Nov 2008 10:21:59 -0800

Adam Smith in Beijing Embedded Flash film 1hr59mins "Is US power in decline? What are we to make of the rise of China? Will a possible equalization of North-South relations herald a more brutal capitalism or a better world? Giovanni Arrighi, Joel Andreas, and David Harvey give their perspectives in this forum, for a discussion of Arrighi's 2007 book Adam Smith in Beijing. The event, filmed in Baltimore, MD, in March of 2008, was organized by the Red Emma's collective."

The T'ang Dynasty

homunculus — Sat, 18 Oct 2008 17:00:12 -0800

China's Golden Age.

Historical Photographs of China

peacay — Wed, 09 Jul 2008 10:23:32 -0800

The Sidney D Gamble Photograph Collection at Duke University consists of about 5,000 newly digitised pictures, taken predominantly in China between 1917 and 1932. Browse by subject, category or location tags. Photos taken in 1908 are to be added in the future. [via]

The Caves of Dunhuang

homunculus — Sun, 06 Jul 2008 20:15:47 -0800

Buddha’s Caves: The Caves of Dunhuang.

Gasoline for that fire?

allkindsoftime — Fri, 18 Apr 2008 05:23:48 -0800

April 18, 1980: Rhodesia is renamed Zimbabwe after it is granted black majority rule. In 1980 the Rhodesian government accepted British and American mediation and signed the Lancaster House agreement for majority rule. In elections held that year, the Zimbabwe African National Union-Patriotic Front (ZANU-PF), as ZANU became known, decisively defeated ZAPU. Robert Mugabe was installed as prime minister, and the nation was renamed Zimbabwe. (via) Nearly 3 wees ago, Zimbabwe voted to, by most accounts, finally oust Mugabe. But he's still there, election results are still withheld, and his militia will shortly be getting their hands on 70 tonnes weaponry coming (via a complacent South Africa) from that one country in Asia hosting the Olympics this year. Lots more at ZimbabweSituation. Prev.

vintage images of the Far East and Asia

nickyskye — Fri, 08 Feb 2008 13:05:39 -0800

Images of Asia l India then and now video l Historical Chinese Postcard Project: 1896 - 1920.

1930s Japanese Air Raid and Civil Defence Posters

Rumple — Sat, 26 Jan 2008 12:16:08 -0800

The Japanese National Archives have a nice set of late 1930s, pre-World War 2, civil defence posters, created in response to their hostilities with China: General Air Raid Defence; Blackout Control; Fire Protection; and Gas Attack. via Airminded, an excellent blog on "Airpower and British Society 1908-1941, mostly." Each poster has explanation if you click the "comments" button. I found the "jpeg" link, not the "jpeg2000" link worked better, unless you want to load a browser tool. I loved was terrified by Action Radius of Heavy Bombers; Blackout of Automobile; Disposal for dropped incendiaries (interesting they were so sensitive to the danger of fire bombing, in 1937); and the Effectiveness of Gas Masks. High resolution is available for all posters. The rest of the archives gallery is great as well, especially these pedagogical wall posters from elementary schools.

The Rise of China

homunculus — Sat, 29 Dec 2007 14:01:06 -0800

The Rise of China and the Future of the West: Can the Liberal System Survive? "China's rise will inevitably bring the United States' unipolar moment to an end. But that does not necessarily mean a violent power struggle or the overthrow of the Western system. The U.S.-led international order can remain dominant even while integrating a more powerful China -- but only if Washington sets about strengthening that liberal order now." Long Time Coming: The Prospects for Democracy in China. "Is China democratizing? The country's leaders do not think of democracy as people in the West generally do, but they are increasingly backing local elections, judicial independence, and oversight of Chinese Communist Party officials. How far China's liberalization will ultimately go and what Chinese politics will look like when it stops are open questions." The Battle of Beijing: What happens when an authoritarian government and thousands of activists go head-to-head at the Olympics? China is about to find out.

南巡

Abiezer — Tue, 06 Nov 2007 10:46:47 -0800

Recording the grandeur of the Qing [Flash; browser re-sizing; Flash-free topic index] Gorgeous and rich resource introducing multiple facets of Qing history via a study of the spectacular painted scrolls that recorded Kangxi and Qianlong's inspection tours through the south of their Empire.

pretty bottles

nickyskye — Sun, 01 Jul 2007 03:40:16 -0800

The art of perfume and snuff bottles: Chinese snuff bottles and more, a variety of types, painted inside and about that technique. About snuff and its use in China. Images on Flickr, at Christie's. Perfume bottles, the history of perfume bottles and perfume. Beautiful glass bottles painted inside by disabled Burmese artist, U Nyo Lay.

The Tank Man of Tiananmen Square

Flem Snopes — Sat, 09 Jun 2007 09:59:34 -0800

17 years since the Tiananmen Square Massacre: The Tank Man [Video Link] Long, but worth it.

Interesting times

Abiezer — Mon, 07 May 2007 15:07:36 -0800

Parallel History Project on Cooperative Security "By far the most ambitious and integral project in the burgeoning field of cold war history"

To remember history

Abiezer — Thu, 05 Apr 2007 04:26:05 -0800

Although I Am Dead (YouTube) (Parts 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10) Compelling documentary by Hu Jie (胡杰) on the death during the Cultural Revolution of Bian Zhongyun (卞仲耘), recalled by her now octogenarian husband. He photographed her corpse after she was beaten to death by Red Guards, students at the middle school of which she was deputy principal. The film's inclusion in the documentary section of YunFest has apparently led to the authorities shutting down the event. (Via)

Japanese Medical Prints

monju_bosatsu — Thu, 04 Jan 2007 12:55:00 -0800

Japanese Medical Prints. Part of the Clendening History of Medicine Library, at the Kansas University Medical Center, and donated by Dr. Matthew Pickard. The digital collections at the Clendening Library also include Florence Nightingale's letters, old school Chinese public health posters, and images from old medical and natural history texts.

Ain't no Mao no mo'

mr_crash_davis — Fri, 01 Sep 2006 11:24:41 -0800

Mao who?

All Roads Lead to The Middle Kingdom

clockworkjoe — Tue, 02 May 2006 12:16:31 -0800

Some Romans may have lived in ancient China. A few Chinese citizens today in the Gansu province have curly blonde hair and European features. It seems possible now that captured Roman soldiers settled in parts of China. We also know that China and Rome weren't completely isolated from one another. Of course, not everyone agrees.

The Return of Jerry Moses and the Jewish Migration to Shanghai

matteo — Thu, 19 Jan 2006 12:59:35 -0800

"Ala ZongGoNin! Ala YouTaNin!". Jerry Moses last walked on Gaoyang Road in 1947. It was called Chaoufoong Road then, and it was home to many of the 18,000 European Jewish refugees who had sought refuge from Nazi Germany in Shanghai's Hongkew District (today known as Hongkou) during the run-up to World War II. He casts his gaze at the lane, his brow loosens and he begins to nod. "This is it, this is it," he says softly. "I know this is it." One week into his first visit to Shanghai in almost 60 years, Moses has found his third home in an exile that lasted from 1941 to 1947. He strides into the space, his manner now much closer to that of the 12-year-old boy who had left than the 70-year-old man who has returned. More inside.

Anti-Japan protests in China

threehundredandsixty — Sat, 16 Apr 2005 17:04:54 -0800

Reports of recent Anti-Japanese demonstrations in China lack any details about the content in the disputed history text books. Is it related to the Nanjing Massacre, which Iris Chang wrote about in her much contested book "The Rape of Nanking"? The Chinese government is certainly not acting as a shining example of upholding human rights by any means, but does that deprive its people from the right to have part of their history at least adequately remembered ? And is the Chinese Government using this collective wound to further its own national interests such as keeping Japan from joining the UNSC?

Robot Friend Ancient Music Fish

dfowler — Wed, 13 Apr 2005 07:57:16 -0800

With My Special Partner, I can drink my way back to the 7th Millenium BCE for ancient music, and the fish’ll tell me how to get home .