Prosperity of High Tang and the City of Chang'an

Over the first century or so of Tang the economy grew quickly and society prospered. Cultivated land kept expanding and techniques improved; important tools such as the curved-shaft plow and the noria were invented and spread. The curved-shaft plow was light and easy to turn, suiting intensive farming; the noria raised water for irrigation by water power, working day and night. Tang built many irrigation works, and grain output rose sharply. Silk weaving, porcelain, papermaking, printing and gold and silver work were all advanced. Porcelain was described as “green in the south, white in the north”: celadon from the Yue kilns in the south and white ware from the Xing kilns in the north. The brilliantly colored Tang sancai is a famed pottery art. Cities such as Chang'an, Luoyang, Yangzhou, Chengdu and Guangzhou thrived, and it was said “Yangzhou first, Yizhou second”. The capital Chang'an was vast and orderly, covering about 84 square kilometers with a population of about a million, among the largest cities of its time. It consisted of the Palace City, Imperial City and outer city, laid out symmetrically along Zhuque Avenue, and was divided into over a hundred walled wards, with residential wards and commercial markets strictly separated. The East and West Markets were two great commercial districts full of goods; the West Market in particular gathered many foreign merchants from the Western Regions, Persia and the Arab world and was called the “Golden Market”. Many foreign envoys, students and monks also lived in Chang'an, a bustling international metropolis. The prosperity of High Tang laid a firm basis for its flourishing culture and foreign exchange.