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Eastern Culture Nucleus: Chinese Rare Books in the USC Libraries

Masters 子部

Ink Pond Anthology (Mochi bian 墨池編二十卷) is a collection of historical texts and treatises on various aspects of calligraphy, organized into eight categories such as studies of characters (字學), brush techniques (筆法), stele inscriptions (碑刻), evaluations (品藻) and tools (器用). Zhu Changwen 朱長文 (1039-1098), a well-known scholar, calligrapher, and expert of zither (琴), compiled the textual collection during the Northern Song dynasty (960-1127). It is considered one of the most important pre-Song works on calligraphic studies. Donated by Dr. Peter Marie Suski, USC's copy is a revised edition published in 1733 (清雍正十三年就閒堂刻本), together with the Seal Thesaurus (Yindian 印典八卷) compiled by Zhu Xiangxian 朱象賢 (active 17th century). The large honorific seal on the cover page (內封面), consisting of the four characters "進呈御覽 (Presented to the emperor for review)" and a motif of two dragons playing with a pearl (雙龍戲珠), was most likely stamped by Zhu Changwen's descendants during the Qing dynasty. According to the preface written by the notable Qing poet and literary critic Shen Deqian 沈德潛 (1673-1769) for Zhu's monograph entitled History of Zither (Qinshi 琴史), they presented four of Zhu's works, including the Ink Pond Anthology and History of Zither, to the Qianlong 乾隆 emperor (1711-1799) for review during his fourth southern inspection tour (南巡) in 1765.

Further Reading:

De Laurentis, Pietro. "The 'Forbidden Classic of the Fade Hall': A Study of an Eleventh-century Compendium on Calligraphic Technique." Asia Major, Third Series, 24, no. 2 (2011): 113-46. Accessed February 7, 2021. https://libproxy.usc.edu/login?url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/41650012.
Chen, Zhi-ping 陳志平. "A Trace to the Source: The Qing Block-Printed Editions of Mochi Bian 清刻本《墨池編》版本源流考述." Taida Journal of Art History 國立臺灣大學美術史研究集刊 45 (2018): i-ii+159-183+185-188+280. DOI: 10.6541/TJAH.201809_(45).0004

Other Rare and Special Editions in the Masters Branch:

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Miscellaneous Morsels from the South Slope of You Mount 酉陽雜俎二十卷 ; 酉陽雜俎續集十卷 (1628-1644) 20
This miscellany was written by Duan Chengshi 段成式‎ (d. 863; courtesy name 字 Kegu 柯古), a poet, writer, and civil officer during the Tang dynasty. It includes a wide range of subjects, such as natural phenomena, dreams, Buddhist stories, social practices, Daoist immortals, flora and fauna, anecdotes, medical prescriptions, wine, and food. USC's copy was collated and printed by Mao Jin 毛晉 (1599-1659; courtesy name 字 Zijin 子晉), a prominent book collector and publisher during the late Ming and early Qing periods. It is part of the ninth series of his collectanea entitled Jindai Mishu 津逮祕書 (See 中國叢書綜録, I, p. 56).
Donated by Dr. Peter Marie Suski. Date/Edition: Chongzhen 崇禎 reign (1628-1644) | 明毛氏汲古閣刻本.

Further Reading:
- Reed, Carrie E. "Motivation and Meaning of a 'Hodge-podge': Duan Chengshi's 'Youyang Zazu'."Journal of the American Oriental Society 123, no. 1 (2003): 121-45. DOI:10.2307/3217847.
- _____. A Tang Miscellany: An Introduction to Youyang Zazu. New York: Peter Lang, 2003.
media/youyangzazu.jpg plain 2021-03-12T13:32:50-08:00 Link to the catalog record in the USC Libraries
Water Margin with Critical Commentaries and Illustrations 評論出像水滸傳二十卷七十回 (1657) 13
Water Margin (Shui hu zhuan 水滸傳), one of the Four Great Classical Novels of Chinese literature, tells about how a group of 108 outlaws gathered in the area of Mount Liang 梁山 and led an army of rebels to fight against the corrupt imperial government at the end of the Northern Song dynasty (960-1127). Shi Nai'an 施耐庵 (ca. 1290-1365) is believed to have compiled the initial version of this novel during the Yuan dynasty. USC's copy is an early facsimile (翻刻) of the 1657 illustrated edition of Water Margin commented by Jin Shengtan 金聖歎 (1608-1661), a prominent literary critic and writer active during the late Ming and early Qing periods, along with an additional preface and commentary by Wang Wangru 王望如 (literary name 號 Tong'an laoren 桐菴老人).
Donated by Dr. Chow Tse-tsung. Preface Date: 1657 (Dingyou year of the Shunzhi reign 順治丁酉). Edition: 清刻本.

Further Reading:
- Altenburger, Roland. "Appropriating Genius: Jin Shengtan’s Construction of Textual Authority and Authorship in His Commented Edition of Shuihu Zhuan (The Water Margin Saga)." In That Wonderful Composite Called Author: Authorship in East Asian Literatures from the Beginnings to the Seventeenth Century, edited by Christian Schwermann and Raji C. Steineck, 163-194. Leiden: Brill, 2014. Accessed February 17, 2021. ProQuest Ebook Central.
- Smith, Paul Jakov. "Shuihu Zhuan and the Military Subculture of the Northern Song, 960-1127." Harvard Journal of Asiatic Studies 66, no. 2 (2006): 363-422. Accessed January 26, 2021. https://libproxy.usc.edu/login?url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/25066819.
media/shuihuzhuan.jpg plain 2021-03-14T10:40:04-07:00 Link to the catalog record in the USC Libraries
The True Meaning of The Journey to the West 西遊眞詮一百回 (1696) 32
The Journey to the West (Xi you ji 西遊記), one of the Four Great Classical Novels of Chinese literature, is a supernatural novel adapted from a travel account entitled The Great Tang Records on the Western Regions (Datang xiyu ji 大唐西域記) and composed by the renowned Buddhist master Xuanzang 玄奘 (c. 602-664) of the Tang dynasty. Xuanzang took a historical trip from China to India from 629 to 645, intending to obtain Buddhist scriptures written in the original Sanskrit language. Wu Cheng'en 吳承恩 (c. 1500-c.1582), a Ming novelist and poet, is generally acknowledged as the author of The Journey to the West, who added mythical and legendary figures, such as Monkey King (孫悟空), Xuanzang's first and most artful and powerful disciple. USC's copy is a popular commentary edition from the early Qing dynasty, annotated and abridged by the critic Chen Shibing 陳士斌 (active 17th century; literary name 號 Wuyizi 悟一子), along with an additional commentary by Jin Shengtan 金聖歎 (1608-1661), a prominent literary critic and writer of the late Ming and early Qing periods.
Donated by Dr. Chow Tse-tsung. Preface date: 1696 (Bingzi year of the Kangxi reign 康熙丙子). Edition: 清刻本.

Further Reading:
- Shao, Ping. "Huineng, Subhūti, and Monkey's Religion in Xiyou Ji." The Journal of Asian Studies 65, no. 4 (2006): 713-40. Accessed January 26, 2021. https://libproxy.usc.edu/login?url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/25076127.
media/xiyouzhenquan.jpg plain 2021-03-14T17:44:30-07:00 Link to the catalog record in the USC Libraries
This encyclopedic work, commissioned by the Kangxi 康熙 Emperor (1654-1722) of the Qing dynasty, consists of a comprehensive collection of quotations from classics, official histories, miscellanies, rare titles, and other works on painting and calligraphy. It draws on a wide variety of 1,844 textual sources held by the Palace Treasury (内府) and other places. Sun Yueban 孫岳頒 (1639-1708), a noted calligrapher and official, served as the editor-in-chief. One of the chief compilers was Wang Yuanqi 王原祁 (1642–1715), the youngest of the preeminent four Wang painters during the Qing dynasty. USC’s copy was published by the Yangzhou Poetry Office (Yangzhou shiju 揚州詩局) on behalf of the palace, and it was printed by Jinyongtang (内封題: 賜板通行/静永堂藏). Yangzhou Poetry Office was founded by Cao Yin 曹寅, the grandfather of Cao Xueqin 曹雪芹 who was the author of The Dream of the Red Chamber (Hong lou meng 紅樓夢), one of the Four Great Classical Novels of Chinese literature.
Donated by Dr. Peter Marie Suski. Date/Edition: 1708 | 清康熙四十七年揚州詩局刻静永堂印本.
The Comprehensive Mirror of Encyclopedias (Yuanjian Leihan 淵鑑類函) is a voluminous encyclopedia compiled by the renowned officials and scholars Zhang Ying 張英 (1637-1708), Wang Shizhen 王士槙 (1634-1711) and others on order of the Kangxi 康熙 Emperor (1654-1722) of the Qing dynasty. This comprehensive encyclopedia contains classical quotations from various types of literature from ancient times to 1556, covering a wide range of topics related to traditional Chinese knowledge such as astronomy, politics, society, art, religion, animals, plants, and many others.
Donated by Dr. Peter Marie Suski. Date/Edition: A reduced-size edition of the Guxiang Studio 古香齋 made by the Palace Wuying Hall in 1748 | 乾隆十三年武英殿內府刻本. USC's copy retains the original imperial binding and is a treasure in the Chinese rare book collection.
This encyclopedia was compiled by Chai Shaobing 柴紹炳 (1616-1670; literary name 號 Xingxuan 省軒), a poet and connoisseur of antiquities during the Qing dynasty. The categories in the compendium include astronomy and calendars, suburban rites and sacrifices, geography, education, and government offices.
Donated by Dr. Peter Marie Suski. Date/Edition: 1758 | 內封題乾隆戊寅文盛堂藏版.
This book is a critical commentary on the Model Calligraphy from the Imperial Archives of the Chunhua Reign (Chunhua Mige fatie 淳化祕閣法帖), and it was written by the Qing calligrapher and official Wang Shu 王澍 (1668-1743). Considered as the earliest collection of Chinese calligraphy, Chunhua Mige fatie was compiled in 992, the third year of the Chunhua 淳化 reign (990-995) by order of the Emperor Taizong 太宗 (939-997) of the Northern Song dynasty.
Donated by Dr. Peter Marie Suski. Date/Edition: 1768 | 清乾隆三十三年蘭言齋刻嘉慶十四年印本.
Sanhuai Studio Collated Edition Twenty-two Masters' Books 三槐堂校栞廿二種子書 (1833?) 15
This collectanea comprises a collection of twenty-two masters' books written and annotated by lesser-known authors from the Warring States (475-221 BC) period to the Ming dynasty. It covers various subjects, such as divination, Daoism, Buddhism, agriculture, filiality, and loyalty. The displayed page comes from the book entitled Commentary to the Scripture of Embryonic Breathing (Taixijing shu 胎息經疏一卷) and written by Wang Wenlu 王文禄 possibly during the Jiajing 嘉靖 reign (1522-1566) of the Ming dynasty. Taixijing is a Daoist canon on alchemical breathing practices, completed probably before the Eastern Jin 東晉 dynasty (317-420). USC's copy lacks the relevant bibliographic information pages (such as preface and printer's colophon), and therefore, cannot be accurately dated. It may be plausibly the same edition as 廿二子全書 (清王纕堂編), 清道光十三年[1833]王氏棠蔭館刻本.
Donated by Dr. Peter Marie Suski. Date: Uncertain (1833?).

Further Reading:
- Pregadio, Fabrizio. "Chinese Alchemy. An Annotated Bibliography of Works in Western Languages. 2. Studies of Alchemical Texts and Authors." Monumenta Serica 44 (1996): 454-65. Accessed February 4, 2021. https://libproxy.usc.edu/login?url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/40727097.
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Essentials of Medicine 醫學精要八卷 (1867) 11
This eight-volume set is a medical book focusing on pediatric symptoms, diseases, and prescriptions. It was written by Huang Yan 黃嚴 (c. 1751-1830; courtesy name 字 Junshou 峻壽), a doctor, poet, and writer of the Qing dynasty. Huang completed the medical book in 1800 and used it as a textbook for his disciples.
Date/edition: 1867 | 同治六年廣州永漢路登雲閣藏板.

Further Reading:
- Bretelle-Establet, Florence. "Learning and Teaching Medicine in Late Imperial China." In Scientific Sources and Teaching Contexts Throughout History: Problems and Perspectives, edited by Alain Bernard and Christine Proustrouse, 273-301. Dordrecht: Springer, 2014. Accessed February 4, 2021. https://doi-org.libproxy1.usc.edu/10.1007/978-94-007-5122-4_11.
- "Huang Yan 黄岩." In Hua shuo guo yi: Guangdong juan 话说国医: 广东卷, edited by Li Shuchun 李姝淳 and Liu Xiaobin 刘小斌主, 67-70. Zhengzhou: Henan ke xue ji shu chu ban she, 2017.
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This four-volume set, published during the late Qing dynasty, is a rare historical travel guide to the West Lake in Hangzhou 杭州, China. It records the couplets of Qing emperors, officials, and scholars in the temporary imperial palaces, historical sites, temples, academies, tombs, and other places around the West Lake. At the end of the fourth volume, there are four itineraries of the West Lake and tide tables of the Qiantang 錢塘 River in the Qing dynasty, which are valuable sources for the study of the historical landscape and development of the West Lake and the surrounding areas. The cover page (內封面) of the first volume includes the book price (si jiao 四角) and an ex libris seal "真州吳氏有福讀書堂藏書" from the collector Wu Yinsun 吳引孫 (1848-1917) active during the late Qing and early Republican periods.
Cover date: 1889 (Jichou year of the Guangxu reign 光緒己丑).
Enlightening Rhymed Phrases for Elementary Students 小學啟蒙韻語 (1900) 10
This book adopts easily-understood, rhymed phrases to promote essential life skills and moral values, such as reading, determination, family, nationalism, and equality, to elementary students. Zheng Guangong 鄭貫公 (1880-1906; original name Dao 道, courtesy name 字 Guanyi 貫一), a noted late Qing journalist and revolutionary newspaper publisher authored and self-published the book in 1900, while he was studying and working with the renowned reformer Liang Qichao 梁啟超 (1873-1929) in Yokohama, Japan. This book is a good example of wooden movable type printing (木版活字印刷) in the early twentieth century.
Preface date: 1900 | 光緒二十六年.

Further Reading:
- Feng, Ziyou 冯自由. "Zheng Guangong shi lue 郑贯公事略." In Ge ming yi shi: chu ji 革命逸史: 初集, 82-5. Beijing: Zhong hua shu ju, 1981.
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Practice Tutorial to the Complete Explanation of Algebra 代數備旨全草 (1905) 5
This book was compiled by Xu Xilin 徐錫麟 (1873-1907), a late Qing revolutionary. It was intended to serve as a practice tutorial to the textbook Complete Explanation of Algebra (Daishu beizhi 代數備旨) written by Calvin Wilson Mateer (1836-1908) and first published in 1891. Mateer was a pioneer American Presbyterian missionary in Shandong 山東 province and founder of the first Christian college in China.
Date/edition: 1905 | 清光緒三十一年石印本.

Further Reading:
- Martzloff, Jean-Claude. "Appendix 1: Chinese Adaptations of European Mathematical Works (from the 17th to the Beginning of the 20th century)." In A History of Chinese Mathematics, 371-89. New York: Springer, 1997.
media/algebra.jpg plain 2021-02-04T10:18:25-08:00 Link to the catalog record in the USC Libraries