When did China get its name?

文章预览

▲ Click ' CHINADAILY ' above to follow us When former Australian prime minister Kevin Rudd visited the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York recently, a Chinese bronze mirror from the Han Dynasty (206 BC-AD 220) caught his attention. The audio guide informed him that the mirror featured the first written reference to the country as China. But Rudd was sceptical about it, and he posted on his Weibo account, asking for verification. Chinese netizens were quick to correct the mistake and pointed out that the characters for the country's name were used earlier on a bronze piece called He Zun, which was unearthed in Northwest China's Shaanxi province in 1963. Chen Liang, the curator of Baoji Bronze Ware Museum which houses the treasure, confirmed on Tuesday that He Zun, which dates back more than 3,000 years, bears the first written form of "China", reported Xi'an newspaper ………………………………