Traditional Occupations

China is a country of a highly developed agricultural civilization, which has demonstrated an exclusive vitality during its long history. «Among 72 people's occupations tillage prevails over all the rest», as the Chinese saying goes. Some 90 per cent of the agricultural territories of the country are sawn with cereals: rice, grain, millet, kaoliang (a variety of) grain sorghum, green foxtail, soya beans, etc. Technical cultures take up some 10 per cent of agricultural lands, the most famous of these plants being a mulberry tree. China is famous all over the world for its tea, its exports has always been one of the most profitable in the national economy. Tillage was usually accomplished by several additional occupations and folk handicrafts that were considered an important supplement in peasant economy. Traditional types of personal subsidiary plots were vegetable gardening, cattle and other livestock breeding, fishing and honey collection.

A Chinese healer from the capital.   China. Beijing. The Chinese. Zhou Pei-Ch'un.   The beginning of the 20th century.		A Chinese vendor selling figures of sticky rice.   China. Beijing. The Chinese. Zhou Pei-Ch'un.   The beginning of the 20th century.		A Chinese tea vendor.   China. Beijing.The Chinese. Zhou Pei-Ch'un.   The beginning of the 20th century.
The best tea looks like this. China. Beijing. Alimov I.		Cup with a lid "gaivan" (ch.) China, the beginning of 20th cent.		Common jasmine tea sold by weight. China. Beijing. Alimov I., 2007
The correct tea making is an art, but not a ceremony. China. Beijing. Alimov I., 2006		Lu Yui - author of the first tractate dedicated to tea. Modern statue. China. Beijing. Alimov I., 2006		View of tea plantations. China, mid-to-late 19th c.
Harvest field. China. Snatenkov V.		Harvest field. China. Snatenkov V.		A bumper harvest of wool. Tibet. The Tibetians. Xinhua News Agency. Ma Jinggiu, 1995
Trader. China. Beijing, before 1904 Zhou Pei-Ch'un.		Fortune-teller. China. Beijing, before 1904 Zhou Pei-Ch'un.		Chinese medical massage. China. Beijing, before 1904 Zhou Pei-Ch'un.