CH'IN DYNASTY

also spelled Kin, Pinyin Qin (221-206 BC), dynasty that established the first great Chinese empire. The Ch'in, from which the name China is derived, established the approximate boundaries and basic administrative system that all subsequent Chinese dynasties were to follow for the next 2,000 years. This dynasty was originated by the state of Ch'in, one of the many small feudal states into which China was divided between 771 and 221 BC. Occupying the strategic Wei River valley in the extreme northwestern area of the country, the Ch'in was one of the least Sinicized of these small states and one of the most martial. Between the middle of the 3rd and the end of the 2nd century BC, the rulers of Ch'in began to centralize state power, creating a rigid system of laws that were applicable throughout the country and dividing the state into a series of commanderies and prefectures ruled by officials appointed by the central government. Under these changes, Ch'in slowly began to conquer its surrounding states, emerging into a major power in China. Finally, in 247 BC, the boy king Chao Cheng came to the throne. He, together with his minister Li Ssu, completed the Ch'in conquests and in 221 created the Ch'in empire; Chao Cheng proclaimed himself Ch'in Shih huang-ti ("First Sovereign Emperor of Ch'in"). To rule this vast territory, the Ch'in instituted a rigid, authoritarian government; they standardized the writing system, standardized the measurements of length and weight and the width of highways, abolished all feudal privileges, built the Great Wall, and in 213, to halt subversive thought, ordered all books burned, except those on such utilitarian subjects as medicine. These harsh methods, combined with the huge tax levies needed to pay for their construction projects and wars, took their toll, and rebellion erupted after Shih huang-ti's death in 210 BC. In 206 the dynasty was overthrown and replaced by the Han dynasty (206 BC-AD 220). While it lasted, the Ch'in dynasty left two architectural monuments of massive proportions, one the Great Wall of China, which actually connected sections of a number of existing short walls, and the other a great palace for the first emperor, which contained a hall of state some 1,500 feet (450 m) square. Its most important artistic contribution may have been the simplification and standardization of the emerging Chinese language. Little survives of Ch'in painting, but it generally emulated the late Chou. Silhouettes drawn on funerary slabs depict feasts and beasts (mythical and actual) and historic scenes. The Ch'in, however, did not last long enough to stamp out literature and learning effectively, and much of the rich legacy of the Shang dynasty managed to pass on to the successor Han, under which the arts thrived greatly.