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Those who say that it does can point to economic
growth, commercialization,
urbanization, the spread of printing,
and the growth of literacy and education as their evidence, as well as social
changes, including the emergence of a new elite with new tastes
in art and tea.
Government by officials largely selected through examinations also gave
the political system a modern look, but, after the failure of an ambitious
attempt at centralization, government remained limited in its reach. Local
elite families, once firmly established, dominated local affairs and supplied
most of the examination candidates.
Click on the highlighted topics above to look more closely at the scenes
in this handscroll depicting city life as rendered by a Song artist for
a Song audience.
You can also begin by previewing a few scenes from the scroll at right
— click on "explore scene" to get a closer look at any
of the three featured scenes.
Or,
start with an introduction to urban life in twelfth-century China as illustrated
by the scroll ...
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