Weaving a magical path through time
Magic defies the rules of nature and physics. In China, magic goes back many years and has evolved from superstitious wizardry into a technologically inspired, sophisticated art form.
Ancient Chinese magic made its appearance as early as 1600 BC, and was closely associated with divination and wizardry, according to Biographies of Exemplary Women (Lie Nu Zhuan) by Liu Xiang, the renowned historian of the Han Dynasty (206 BC- AD220).
In 108 BC, Liu Che, emperor of the Western Han Dynasty, gathered more than a hundred acrobats and magicians in the imperial palace and hosted the biggest magic show in history. Zhang Heng's Western Metropolis Rhapsody (Xi Jing Fu) records that Duke Huang of the Eastern Sea (Donghai Huanggong), a showman and magician, did knife-swallowing and fire-spitting shows at this gathering.
