Time Capsules from Ancient China
The Task | Questions | Resources | Culminating Question | Project | Assessment 

Task

Source: Purdue University
Time Capsule from 207 BC
Qin Shi Huang was the first Emperor of China. He lived in the 3rd Century BC. In 1974 farmers uncovered what is now called the 8th Ancient Wonder of the World: an army of life-sized terra cotta soldiers. In the three pits the Chinese have excavated, there are over 7,000 buried soldiers. Modern archeologists are learning more about the Qin Dynasty and civilization in the year 207 BC. This tomb has the first, most ancient, life-sized human figures ever found buried in China.  What do you think caused Qin Shi Huang to create such a magnificent necropolis? In this unit you will explore ways in which Qin Shi Huang might have had the idea to bury life-sized terra cotta soldiers in an underground city.. 
 
Source:CornellUniversityArtHistory 380 slide list 
Time Capsule from 433 BC
The MarquisYi of Zeng's tomb has wonderful bronze objects: a set of 65 bells, a bronze wine cooler, musicians, concubines, and tools. While we don't know what kind of music was played on the bells, they are capable of producing western music which uses a 12 tone scale, such as that composed by Bach, Mozart, and Beethoven. In addition to the bells, there is one of the most beautiful bronze wine coolers ever cast in bronze. The Marquis lived a sumptuous life and intended to go to the afterlife with all he needed to continue living in the style in which he had become accustomed. In his tomb he buried the musicians and concubines who made his life pleasurable with him. Some modern archeologists refer to his tomb as one of "wine, women, and song." We learn different things from the Marquis' tomb than from that of Qin Shi Huang because they chose to bury different objects with them.

Check out Joe Heller's time capsule.

Time Capsule from 2000 AD
An archeologist in the year 4000 will open a buried time capsule and in it are things that may open the secrets of the year 2000. The time capsule can be as large or as   small as you wish. In it should be things that will last for 2000 years. Most wood, cloth, and paper will not last unless they are protected from moisture.Electronic devices may not be usable due to changes in infrastructure over the next 2000 years.

In this unit you are the architect and project manager who will design the time capsule to be  opened in the year 4000. What do you want it to tell people about the year 2000? What objects from your own life will you include? Will you commission an artist to make objects to be included? What is the message you wish to convey about yourself? 

Activity Questions

Write your answers in MediaSpace
When someone powerful creates a time capsule, they care about the image they leave behind. 
  1. What do you think Qin Shi Huang wished you to think about him?
  2. What objects make you think that? 
  3. What did the Marquis Yi of Zeng want the world to think of him?
  4. What objects make you think that?
Build a time capsule which will be buried until the year 4000.
  1. What do you want to tell people about yourself? What is important about your life and the times in which you live ?
  2. What will be in the time capsule that will convey your image of your life and times? How large will it need to be?
  3. Will there be sculptures of humans? What size? What are they wearing? What are they doing?
  4. Will there be objects of some aspect of the culture, e.g.  art, musical instruments, modes of transportation, implements of war, consumer items, job-related tools?
Most "new" ideas are not really new. They build off of another idea.
There is no prior evidence of any Chinese life-sized human statues prior to the reign of Qin. What influenced Qin Shi Huang in the objects he chose to bury? 
  1. How do you think  Qin Shi Huang had the idea of burying life sized human terra cotta soldiers? 
  2. What did Chinese usually bury with their emperor's tombs? What did Chinese believe about the afterlife? 
  3. Was it possible that Qin Shi Huang had heard of ancient Egyptian, Greek, or Persian sculptures of life-sized human figures? 
  4. What did the sculptures of those countries look like? 
  5. What modes of transport might have allowed information to travel between east and west? 
  6. What are possible routes that information and goods would have come from the west to the east? 
  7. Do you think that Qin had seen an Egyptian, Greek or Persian sculpture?
  8. Do you think that Qin had only heard about their sculptures? 
  9. Why do you think that?

Resources

Use this space to point out places on the internet (or physical resources in the classroom) that will be available for the learners to use to accomplish the task. Embed the anchors within a description of each resource so that your learners know in advance what they're clicking on. 
  Book List
Morton, W.S. (1995). China: Its History and Culture. New York:McGraw-Hill,
     Inc.
Kalman, B.(1989). China: The Culture. New York: Crabtree Publishing Co.
 

Culminating Questions

  1. Write what you think you know about Qin Shi Huang and 207 BC from looking at photos of the buried terra cotta soldiers. 
  1. Include the specific objects that make you hold your opinion. 
  1. Write what you think you know about Marquis Yi of Zeng and 433 BC from looking at photos of the buried terra cotta soldiers. 
  1. Include the specific objects that make you hold your opinion. 
  1. Ask other students you don't know well to describe what they think they know about you from looking at the room you designed. 
  1. What objects included in the room did they think were the most significant? 
Project
  1. Read about Qin Shi Huang and Marquis Yi of Zeng by exploring links and finding other resources.
  2. Write an essay in MediaSpace comparing the differences between the interests of Qin Shi Huang and Marquis Yi of Zeng which are evident from the objects found in their burial sites. 
  3. Create a time capsule of your own in MediaSpace which will contain objects in it that are important to you and/or to the year 2000.
  4. Write in MediaSpace what you think about another student's time capsule. What you think you can know about that person by looking at the capsule they design?
  5. What things are impossible to know about them from their time capsule?

Assessment

  1. Compare other people's thoughts about your time capsule the image of yourself you want to convey by your choice of objects.
________________________
Your project title    ________________________
Your name
Date:    __________________
___________________________
Peer reviewer  ___________________________
Peer reviewer 

Five is the high.
Criteria
Self 
Peer
Teacher
Total
Value of time capsule, was it worthwhile?
1 2 3 4 5 
1 2 3 4 5 
1 2 3 4 5 
 
Followed instructions
1 2 3 4 5
1 2 3 4 5
1 2 3 4 5
Finished project on time
1 2 3 4 5 
1 2 3 4 5
1 2 3 4 5 
 
The other peoples comments reflect 
about your time capsule as you envisioned it
1 2 3 4 5 
1 2 3 4 5 
1 2 3 4 5 
 
Completed Qin Shi Huang's section
1 2 3 4 5 
1 2 3 4 5 
1 2 3 4 5 
 
Completed Marquis Yi of Zeng's section
1 2 3 4 5 
1 2 3 4 5 
1 2 3 4 5 
 
Picture of Time Capsule
1 2 3 4 5 
1 2 3 4 5 
1 2 3 4 5 
 
Overall Project
1 2 3 4 5 
1 2 3 4 5 
1 2 3 4 5 
 
Totals:

         
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