Analyze Han Dynasty innovations and the origins of the Silk Road via Zhang Qian's expeditions 138-115 BCE — paper, seismoscope, wheelbarrow, magnetic-compass precursor, silk loom — and the Silk Road's role in the FIRST documented Eurasian world-system per the Han Shu's account of Da Qin (Rome)
Exercise
Difficulty 4
~6 min
hist.g6.s.ex_30
Rubric Response
Prompt
Trace paper's westward transmission from Han China c. 105 CE to first European paper mills c. 1100 CE. Name 4 transmission stages with approximate dates.
How it's presented
mode
text
Answer criteria
type
rubric scored
rubric
4 stages: Han China c. 105 CE → Sasanian Persia by 6th century → Abbasid Caliphate after Battle of Talas 751 CE → al-Andalus by 10th century → European paper mills by 11th-12th century CE
Hints
- MG-4 + Lesson 15 closing slide.
- Battle of Talas 751 CE is a key transmission moment.
Misconceptions to watch
- Forgetting the 1,000-year lag from invention to European mass-literacy use
Used in lessons