Educational Media Reviews Online

Part one, Unearthing the Truth Behind a Myth: The Xia Dynasty, makes a strong case for the identification of the Erlitou sites with China’s first dynasty, the Xia. The team of Chinese and Japanese archaeologists have made many important discoveries, including a dragon made of thousands of pieces of turquoise, and the oldest Chinese palace complex (using a layout adopted by all subsequent ones).

Part two, The Rise of and Fall of Dynasties in Ancient China, continues the story, with attention given to conquest and unification, ritual, and the development and purpose of writing.

This is a good production. A re-enactment or visual scan of artifacts is sometimes repeated, but there is enough variety to hold one’s interest. Their use of maps is very helpful, and it’s great to see the terra-cotta warriors presented as they originally looked, brightly painted.

Although these DVDs tell a fairly linear, coherent story, it would help a lot to have some knowledge of ancient China beforehand. These would be a great addition to a class on China—bringing them up-to-date on the latest archaeological discoveries-- but a little bewildering for someone with no prior knowledge.

The telling is at times curiously bombastic: we are told several times that China is the only ancient people that has remained unconquered to the present day. I’m not sure whether they have forgotten the Mongols and more recent conquerors, or if they mean something different by it. If they mean the ethnic group has weathered every storm, the same could be said for the Egyptians, Greeks, and doubtless many others. But the occasional odd tone should not detract from the value that these DVDs offer to students of Chinese history.