Yuan
Dynasty
The chao (simplified Chinese: 钞; traditional Chinese: 鈔; pinyin: chāo) was the official banknote of the Yuan dynasty in China. Unlike the earlier paper money such as jiaozi, it was the first paper currency to be used as the predominant circulating medium in the history of China.
The Yuan dynasty was a Mongol khanate that ruled over China from 1271 to 1368, after the Mongols conquered the Western Xia, Western Liao, and Jin dynasties they allowed for the continuation of locally minted copper currency, high government expenditures forced the Yuan to create Fiat money in order to sustain government spending.
The magnetic compass was one of the greatest inventions that China ever made. It came in two parts, a metal spoon and magnetic land stone with a square bronze plate. This invention was so important because it helped people travel, and travel along China's Silk Road.
Chinese algebra was taken to its highest level by Yuan mathematician Zhu Shijie.Among the greatest mathematicians of Yuan Dynasty period was Zhu Shijie. His masterpiece Jade Mirror of the Four Unknowns took Chinese algebra to its highest level. In it, Zhu solved simultaneous equations with up to four unknowns using a rectangular array of coefficients, equivalent to modern matrices
Novel was developed as a literary form. Among the major cultural achievements during the reign of the Yuan Dynasty were the development of drama and the novel. Major works in theater and fictional literature during the Yuan period would later set the standard for subsequent eras.
Landscape painting was the emphasis on personal expression
Painting during the period was dominated by the Four Masters of the Yuan dynasty (Huang Gongwang, Ni Zan, Wang Meng,and Wu Zhen). They were major exponents of “literati painting”, which was concerned more with individual understanding than with outward representation and immediate visual appeal.
A blue and white porcelain jar made during the Yuan dynasty was auctioned for the equivalent of 230 million yuan in 2005. This was the highest price ever paid for a piece of porcelain. Experts believe the reason for the high price is that it represents the pinnacle of development of Chinese blue-and-white porcelain.
Deficiency diseases were discovered and described in detail
There were several advances made in medical science during the Yuan period. Wei Yilin was one of the leading physicians of the period. Wei invented a new technique for restoring dislocated joints using a suspension method, which he described in his famous treatise in orthopedics titled Shiyi Dexiaofang (Efficacious Remedies of the Physicians). Another leading physician of the time was Hu Sihui, whose bookYinshan Zhengyao (Important Principles of Food and Drink) became a classic in Chinese medicine. The book was the first to describe how diseases are connected to deficiency of certain components in food.