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Louise Pryke, Honorary Research Associate, Department of Classics and Ancient History, University of Sydney

From ancient kings to Trump and Xi: when did humans start shaking hands? And why?

Xi Jinping Donald Trump Geta Caracalla Emmanuel Macron Mark Latham Scott Morrison China Beijing Covid-19

On Thursday, United States President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping shook hands outside China’s Great Hall of the People, in Beijing, for 14 seconds. Almost immediately, we saw various pundits trying to interpret the meaning of the interaction.

A brief look at the history of the handshake, however, reveals the complexity of this gesture’s symbolism.

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