First, the original market
After the ancient society of China entered the agricultural period and the social productive forces developed to a certain extent, the ancestors began to exchange a small amount of surplus products, thus producing the original market. In ancient times, before the formal market was built, it was often "taking wells as the market", which was convenient for merchants and livestock to use water and wash goods. Later, in the vicinity of towns in Shaanxi Province, wells were built for businessmen to drink horses, and this legacy continued until liberation.
Second, the Zhou Dynasty market
The formal market of the Zhou Dynasty was traded in three times: morning market, afternoon market and night market. The participants in the night market are all small traders and vendors. There is a gate in the market. Those who enter the market are called "entry" and the trading place in the market is called "boss". There are several stores in the same market according to different types of business. There is a house for storing goods in the city, named "chán", which is a pallet house for later generations. All goods are built by the government, so businessmen must pay taxes on their goods.
Vouchers used in trade are called "pledges". Among them, the long coupons used in the big market are used to buy cattle and horses, and the short coupons used in the small market are used to buy weapons and rare things. Businessmen must obey the orders issued by market officials, or they will be punished, and one of the ways of punishment is fine.
Third, the Han market.
During the Western Han Dynasty, there were six major commercial cities in China, while Chang 'an, the capital of China, was rich in material wealth. Relying on the convenience of land and water trade routes, it connects with other famous commercial cities in China (such as Luoyang, Handan, Linzi, Wan and Chengdu) and forms a nationwide commercial network.
Chang 'an's business circle is mainly distributed in nine cities, and the planes of the nine cities are all square, with 266 steps in all directions. The city has a city wall, a cross-shaped passage in the city, and buildings displaying goods on both sides. Shops are arranged in rows, next to the city wall, and there are shops for stacking goods. As long as businessmen operate in cities, they must register, and those who have obtained city registration must pay "city rent" to the government.
According to records, the commodities circulating in the market at that time were mainly divided into agriculture, forestry, livestock, by-products, fishing, handicrafts and mineral products. There are also handmaids who buy and sell as labor, dolphins, leek eggs, dogs and horses. K, fried fish and cut liver and other cooked food. In addition to nine cities, Chang 'an also has some small markets that trade the products, classics, books and musical instruments of the county. In Guanzhong area, there are also loan sharks or hoarders who make a fortune, and some who make a fortune by selling pulp and breasts.
Fourth, the Tang market.
Dongcheng and Xicheng are the commercial centers of Chang 'an, the capital of Tang Dynasty. Dongcheng is in the southeast of the imperial city, and Xicheng is in the southwest of the imperial city. There are criss-crossing streets inside the two cities, which divide the two cities into "wells" respectively, and each well contains 9 squares. Every square faces the street, and there are rows of shops.
There are 220 industries in East-West City. There are coats, boots, scales and silks in Xicheng, as well as Doujia Store, Hou Jingxian Pawnshop and Zhangjialou Hotel. The companies in the East City are roughly similar to those in the West City.
Seven shops in the east and four shops in the west of Zhuque Street in Chang 'an have hotels (for businessmen to live in) or hotels (warehouses). In Xuanzong of Tang Dynasty, Yuan Zhen, a Japanese monk, once lived in Gaojiadian outside Chunming Gate and Wangjiadian in Chongren Square. Foreign businessmen leave the goods in the accommodation and sell them one after another, and the shopkeeper collects the storage fee. Some of the foreign businessmen came from the Western Regions, with a total number of thousands at most, and many of them also manipulated the whole jewelry industry. In addition to non-governmental trade, imperial eunuchs often come to buy and sell by force. They pay little or no price, which makes the sellers go home empty-handed, so they are called "Gong Shi".
(Image from the Internet)