Primary sourceArtifact221-207 BCE

Qin Bronze Weight, Nanjing Museum

221-207 BCE

A Qin dynasty bronze weight showing the standardized measures used throughout the empire of Qin Shi Huang.

This weight is a surviving example of the standardized measures Qin Shi Huang imposed across his empire.

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A dark bronze weight with an octagonal, tapered body and a square hole through its top, displayed on a white pedestal in a glass case. Chinese characters are inscribed on its sides. A placard below reads in Chinese and shows a QR code. — Qin dynasty bronze weight, 221-207 BCE. Nanjing Museum.

About this source

What it is

This bronze weight dates to the Qin dynasty and is held in the Nanjing Museum. It has an octagonal, tapered shape with a square hole through the top and Chinese characters inscribed on its sides.

Why it matters

Weights such as this were part of Qin Shi Huang's broader program to unify measurement systems across the many regions he conquered. Such standardization made trade, taxation, and governance more consistent throughout the empire.

Look closer

What might the inscribed characters on the weight say or mean?
Why does the weight have a hole through its top?
How might an object like this have been used in daily trade?

This artifact is part of the curated material that grounds the AI version of Emperor Qin Shi Huang on Humy.ai — when students ask about related events, the AI can quote it and cite it.

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