Continue the ancient book collection

Author: Zhang Yuanji (Compiler)
Publisher:
Publishing Date: 2001-10-01
Features: During the Guangxu period of the Qing Dynasty, the Chinese envoy to Japan Li Shuchang commissioned his aide Yang Shujing to extensively collect Chinese classics on the brink of extinction in Japan, compiling the Ancient Rare Series and pioneering the cause of rescuing, preserving, reviving, and disseminating China's precious ancient books. In 1919, Mr. Zhang Yuanji, then heading the Commercial Press, continued Li Shuchang's unfinished work by publishing the Continuation of the Ancient Rare Series in a series format. This series, starting from the Song-era Mencius and ending with the Song-era Collected Works of Du Gongbu, spanned thirty-eight years and produced forty-seven volumes, compiling fine woodblock-printed ancient books from different periods (primarily the Song Dynasty) and regions in China, holding great value in textual criticism and bibliographical studies. The original Continuation of the Ancient Rare Series had inconsistent page sizes, making it inconvenient to store and read. Moreover, due to its limited print run and successive publications, complete copies are now rare. After publishing the fine-bound facsimile of the Ancient Rare Series, our press began preparing this work, collecting all volumes and adjusting their sizes based on content and layout. They were categorized into four sections—“Confucian Classics,” “History,” “Philosophy,” and “Literature”—and published in 1994. The original page frame sizes are annotated at the beginning of each book for reference. The first edition of the Continuation of the Ancient Rare Series has now sold out, so our press has reprinted it, largely preserving the original edition's appearance for readers. Mr. Zhang Shunian, the son of Zhang Yuanji, and Mr. Zhang Renfeng, his grandson, assisted in the reprinting of this work. Mr. Zhang Renfeng also wrote a preface, providing a detailed introduction to the compilation process of the Continuation of the Ancient Rare Series and related matters. We extend our gratitude to them.