In Sui and Tang Dynasty, the economy of the south bank of Yangtze River developed continuously. In Five Dynasties Period, Qianliu was crowned as the King of Wuyue Kingdom in Lin'an. And later with the political and economic center moving from northern China to southern China, Zhejiang became the richest province of the feudal China. Thanks to the development of economy and politics, the science and art revealed a kind of vigorous vital force. 
    As for studies & ideology, the Sui dynasty noted monk Zhi Zhuan from Tiantai Guoqing Temple syncretized the characteristics of the southern & northern Buddhism to build up a new sect (one of the six main sects of Buddhism in China), namely Tiantai Sect. In Southern & Northern Song dynasties, Zhejiang Theory became one of the most important branches of learning then. Contrary to the Confucian school of idealist philosophy represented by Chen Yi and Zhu Xi, Cheng Liang from Yongkang and Ye Shi from Yongjia advocated the utilitarian theory. In their opinions, rules should be pertinent enough to be applied to a particular situation. It was typical of Eastern Zhejiang School in Southern Song dynasty. One of the Three Worthy Persons in Southeast (Lu Zuqian, Zhu Xi and Zhang Shi), the Southern Song scholar Lu Zuqian initiated the Lv School (alias Wu School) which used to be the central thoughts of the Eastern Zhejiang School, and enjoyed high reputations in Chinese Cultural History. 

  As for science and technology, the eastern Zhejiang architect Yu Hao of Northern Song dynasty was famous for the design of wooden pagodas and multi-floor buildings. His work Wood Scripture is the nation's earliest monograph on wooden structure buildings of the ancient times. The movable-type printing technology invented by the Northern Song publishing house worker of Hangzhou City, Bi Sheng is an important revolution on the world's printing history. From then on, printing industry began prevailing in Hangzhou. Half of the official publication Supervision Copy of Song dynasty was printed in Hangzhou. The books were marvelous with carving, printing, mounting and engraving patterns. In the Northern Song dynasty's Hangzhou, the famous scientist Shen Kuo was so versatile that he wrote the book Sketchbook of Dream Brook that has been regarded not only as a confluence of science but also a very priceless history file. 
    From the early Tang Dynasty on, there were a lot of Zhejiang origin litterateurs, calligraphers and drawers. According to the history, there were altogether 867 poets engaged in writing Ci poems, among whom 216 poets were from Zhejiang province, nearly a quarter. There were such great poets of Tang and Song dynasties as Luo Bingwang, Meng Jiao, Qian Qi, Zhang Xian and Lu You whose poems had great influences to the development of the Chinese poems. During the Northern & Southern Song dynasties, Zhejiang was also the origin place of the Chinese dramas. There were many Za-Ju (a kind of drama) performances in Hangzhou when it was the capital of Southern Song Dynasty. It was in Wenzhou that the fully developed drama form of China's Xiwen appeared.

 Zhao Mengfu, Washing The Horses

In tang dynasty, the painter Sun Wei is the most influential artist whose skills used in The Leisurely and the works of pines and bamboos influenced the later artists. There were famous calligraphers like Yu Shinan, Zhu Suiliang, Sun Guoting, He Zhizhang and Xu Hao who won high praises for their works and characters alike. In Southern Song Dynasty, Hangzhou set up a painting academy for the communication of the painters so that Zhejiang became the center of the fine art circle of the country. Three of the so-called Four Great Masters of Southern Song Dynasty, namely, Liu Songnian, Ma Yuan and Xia Gui were Zhejiang natives. 
    As for industrial art, the craftsmen pursued light, natural and individual-oriented styles. These styles were the fashion of the Song Culture that made Hangzhou its center. Their concept naturally worked into the productions like porcelain, lacquer, printing, smelting, and architecture and stamped them with distinct Zhejiang characteristics. The products like Hangzhou silk, Wenzhou lacquers, Chuzhou porcelains and Mingzhou straw mats were important export goods then. The bronze foundry industry of Yuezhou, Taizhou and Wenzhou had always been the most highly developed ever since Tang and Song Dynasties. The bronze wares made with the refined craftsmanship were light and durable. The porcelain products were very delicate then among which the sculpture porcelain from Tang Dynasty's Yue Kilns and the celadon from Song Dynasty's Longquan County were the outstanding representatives that marked the two important development levels of the Chinese celadon. Besides, the products of the Southern Song Royal Kiln is the originator of the world's broken-veins vitreous enamels and their unique figures enjoy an important position in Chinese pottery & porcelain history. 
    In addition to the above-mentioned achievements, during the Tang & Song dynasties, the silk culture, wine culture and tea culture also stepped into a flourishing era in Zhejiang Province. 

Zhao Mengfu, Arhat in Red Clothes