1. For Starters: Visit Leon Poon's "History of China" web site based on the U.S. Army Area Handbook for an introduction and overview of the history and culture of China from ancient times to the present. Of particular interest to you will be the "History Timeline" which provides a chronology from the Xia Dynasty to the People's Republic of China. Additionally, reading through the sections on Historical Setting, Ancient Dynasties and the Imperial Era will prove an invaluable study aid for this segment of the course.

2. Take a "virtual" stroll through the art galleries of the "Art of China Homepage" for an overview of the arts in China from ancient to modern times. You won't want to miss viewing the Neolithic pottery bowl and the Shang Dynasty vessel on display for insights into the material culture of ancient China.

3. Visit Another Online Museum's Asian Art Museum--China Collection for a comprehensive overview of the art and history of China. While at this virtual museum you can choose from among three tour options: the Art Tour, the Historical Tour, or the Wandering the Gallery Tour. Your best bet would be to take the Historical Tour since that will give you a nice bit of historical background for the materials you'll be viewing.

4. Visit Asiapac's "100 Chinese Emperors" web site for a collection of biographical and historical sketches of the rulers of early China.

5. Kongzi: If you'd like a more in-depth look at the writings of Confucius, visit Prof. A. Charles Muller's "Four Confusian Texts" translations archive for English translations of the The Analects, The Great Learning, The Doctrine of the Mean and Mencius.

6. A visit to the "China the Beautiful" web site is an indispensable excursion because there you'll find a comprehensive collection of primary and secondary materials in Chinese and in English translation for much of the Classical literature, philosophy, and history you'll hear about in lecture and read for class. Of particular interest will be the Poetry, Calligraphy and Main Room sections.

7. The Chinese Philosophy Page, maintained by Steven Brown, is a comprehensive resource for students of Chinese philosophy . Here you'll find links, text archives and biographies for the major Chinese philosophers.

8.The "Ancient China" section of the Exploring Ancient World Cultures web site is a very useful resource to keep in mind while surfing the web for China-related materials, especially if you're interested in annotated chronologies of early Chinese history or essays on the subject of Ancient China.

9. If you're interested in pursuing a more intensive course of study in Chinese Philosophy you might want to browse through Bryan W. Van Norden's "Essential Readings in Chinese Philosophy," an annotated bibliography documenting essential secondary readings in English on Chinese philosophy.

10. Scan through Prof. Gary Arbuckle's Lectures on Ancient China (from his History 280: History of Asia to 1500 AD) for another perspective on the history of early China. The Ancient China lectures are in three parts: Part I (From Shang to Qin), Part II (From Heaven to Man) & Part III (From Qin to Han).

11. For a comprehensive compilation of historiographical information on China, visit the Univ. of Pittsburgh's East Asian Library's "History Information of China" web page.

12. Visit Paul Frankenstein's "Condensed China: Chinese History for Beginners" for an eclectic overview of Chinese history. You'll find two sections of particular interest: 1) Bibliography and 2) The Origins of Chinese Civilization.

13. The Silk Road: Read through Oliver Wild's account of the "story of one of the world's oldest and most historically important trade routes and its influences on the culture of China, Central Asia and the West ." Be sure to visit the photo gallery for a photo-essay highlighting spots along the trade route.

14. Virtual Tour of Xi'An: Take Hua Yang's Tour of the Ancient Capital of China. As a virtual tourist immerse yourself in Emperor Qin Shihuang's ancient citadel. Don't forget to take a look at the Tomb of the First Emperor or to visit the many Buddhist Temples in and around Xi'An.

15. Read through Marylin Shea's article on "Xi'An and the Silk Road" for a contemporary account of travel on the Silk Road and the lasting influence of the silk trade on China. Additionally, you might enjoy viewing a small collection of images from the cave temples of Dunhuang featuring Buddhist Art from the Silk Road.