Summer in ancient China was no picnic—especially when you consider how sweltering it could get. Historical records, like those from The Annals of Fushan County, tell of extreme heatwaves where temperatures reached over 40°C (104°F), and people even died from the heat. Imagine enduring that without the luxury of modern air conditioning! So, how did the ancient Chinese survive these blazing summers?

Cooling Devices: A Taste of Ancient Air Conditioning

First off, the ancient Chinese were no strangers to cooling devices, and they got quite creative! While they didn’t have the electric fans or air conditioners we enjoy today, they did have some pretty impressive alternatives.

One of the coolest inventions was the pull-cord fan. These weren’t your average handheld fans. We’re talking about huge fans, the size of doors, suspended in the halls of wealthy households. Servants would pull a rope to move the giant blades and create a cool breeze. Not bad, right? But that wasn’t all. There were also hand-cranked fans, which resembled a manual air blower. Now, imagine cooling off with one of those during a hot day—pretty nifty!

In even more luxurious settings, some of the wealthiest people used a form of ancient air conditioning. By placing a fan in front of water or ice-filled basins, the air blown out would be refreshingly cool. And just to make things even fancier, they’d sometimes place fresh flowers in front of the fan, so the air wasn’t just cool but also scented. Talk about a summer breeze!

Wealthy estates also had “air conditioning wells”. A deep well would be dug inside the home, connected to underground water. Air would flow through the opening on the surface, bringing cool, fresh air from below. These wells were a common feature in large homes during the Tang and Song dynasties. Some of the most opulent homes even took it a step further with cooling pavilions, where water was funneled to the rooftop, creating a man-made waterfall to help cool things down. It’s like they had the world’s first “water-cooled” cooling system.

Chilled Treats: The Ancient Ice Creams and Cold Beverages

Besides using cool air, the ancient Chinese also enjoyed cold treats to beat the heat. The ice-cold delicacies might surprise you!

Long before refrigeration, ancient China had ice-storage techniques. They didn’t need a freezer—just a little foresight! During the winter, they would store large blocks of ice, harvested from frozen lakes, in ice cellars (called ice wells) to use in the summer. The ice was carefully packed with straw to keep it from melting too quickly. In big cities like Beijing and Xi’an, these ice cellars were a common sight. By the Qing dynasty, Beijing had a government-managed ice storage system with 18 separate ice cellars holding over 200,000 ice blocks!

But what did ancient Chinese people use ice for? They had their own version of cold beverages—just like today’s iced tea or smoothies. One popular drink was called “ice团冷元子” (ice ball cold yuanzi), a treat similar to modern-day bubble tea or sweet taro balls. In the Yuan dynasty, Mongol nobles also introduced “milk ice,” a milk-based frozen treat, which might just be the early ancestor of ice cream! In fact, the famous explorer Marco Polo loved this icy dessert so much that he brought the recipe back to Europe, where it evolved into the ice cream we know today. Imagine that: the origins of ice cream may have actually been Chinese!

The Ice Trade: Bringing American Ice to China

You might wonder—how did they get enough ice in the summer, especially in southern China, where winters are milder? The answer is surprisingly global. In the 19th century, American merchants started exporting ice from North America to southern China. These ice blocks were carefully packed in sawdust to prevent them from melting during the long ocean voyage. Though it wasn’t a huge money-maker, it was still profitable enough, especially since Chinese merchants were willing to pay for this luxury in exchange for valuable goods like tea and silk.

Now, if you’re thinking it’s ridiculous to transport ice all the way from the U.S. to China, think about it this way: It was a great way to balance trade. China didn’t import many European goods, but they sure needed ice to survive those scorching summers! Plus, ice made for great cargo during long ocean voyages since it could be used to balance the ship’s weight.

Cool Innovations and Their Legacy

The ancient Chinese approach to summer heat may seem a little “old-fashioned” compared to our modern air conditioning systems, but their creativity and resourcefulness were impressive. From air wells to ice storage, they knew how to stay cool even without modern technology. In fact, many of these ideas laid the groundwork for the cooling technologies we use today, showing that ancient solutions were often ahead of their time.

So next time you’re lounging in front of your air conditioner on a hot summer day, you can thank ancient Chinese inventiveness for making the heat a little more bearable—and maybe even enjoy a cool treat, knowing you’re indulging in a centuries-old tradition.