Shan Hai Jing (Classic of Mountains and Seas)

This book is considered the oldest geographical writing in China. The author is unknown. It is thought to have been written during the late Warring States Period (approximately 200 BC) and was then supplemented in the Qin and Han Dynasties. It is the earliest geographical work to have survived to the present in China. The book is divided into three categories: Classic of the Mountains, Classic of the Seas and Classic of the Great Wilderness. Classic of the Mountains is the most valuable section and divides the country into five parts: the central mountains, southern mountains, western mountains, northern mountains and eastern mountains. It also describes rivers, roads, nationalities, animals, vegetation, minerals, medicines, sacrifices and witch doctors. The book recorded 89 types of minerals and rocks and 170 metal ore deposit areas, and it is the oldest geological document in China. The Classic of the Seas and Classic of the Great Wilderness mainly contain myths, which decrease...