Tie Guan was an institution in charge of the iron smelting industry in the Qin and Han dynasties (221BC-220AD). But it sometimes also referred to the official position. The establishment of Tie Guan experienced a relatively long process.
From the Zhou Dynasty (1100-221BC), an institution in charge of all industries was set up. During the Spring and Autumn Period (770-476BC), the Yu official managed the handicraft industry. A stamp unearthed in Linzi inEast China'sShandongProvinceindicated that the Qi Kingdom during that time already had Tie Guan managing the iron smelting industry. After Qin Emperor Shihuang unifiedChina, he appointed Tie Guan to be in charge of the iron industry.
The iron smelting industry flourished in the Han Dynasty (206BC-220AD), thus the institution in charge of the industry was expanded and there were 50 Tie Guans across the country. According toHan Shu(Records of the Han Dynasty) andShi Ji(Records of the Grand Historian), two historical records inChina, the county that produced iron had a senior Tie Guan while the county that did not produce iron had a junior Tie Guan who managed the iron smelting and trade.
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