Dream of the Red Chamber (Upper, Middle, and Lower)

Author: Cao Xueqin
Publisher:
Publishing Date: 2006-01-01
Features: In China, Dream of the Red Chamber, Romance of the Three Kingdoms, Water Margin, and Journey to the West are widely known as the "Four Great Classical Novels," almost household names for all ages. In the history of Chinese literature, no book has had as many manuscripts or as frequent printings as Dream of the Red Chamber. In the preface to Cheng Weiyuan's "Cheng Jia Version," it is mentioned that the book was "placed in temples and monasteries," and in the preface to Cheng Weiyuan and Gao E's "Cheng Yi Version," it is referred to as "commercially copied editions," indicating that Dream of the Red Chamber was already widely circulated among the people during the manuscript stage and highly regarded by readers.
"Embroidered illustrations," also known as "embroidered woodblock prints" or "illustrated portraits," originally referred to embroidered images of Buddha and human figures. Since the mid-Ming Dynasty, illustrations of individual characters in theatrical plays, novels, and book covers published in markets were also called "embroidered illustrations" due to their fine line work and detailed depictions.
Known versions of Dream of the Red Chamber range from wood (movable type) editions from the 56th year of the Qianlong reign to lead-type editions from the late Republic of China period, with over 100 variations. Starting from the Cheng Jia and Cheng Yi versions, they were already accompanied by relatively primitive but somewhat rough illustrations. Later published annotated editions also included similar illustrations. Among them, the Wang Xuexiang annotated edition of Dream of the Red Chamber published in the 12th year of the Daoguang reign of the Qing Dynasty featured 64 illustrations. Of course, during the circulation of Dream of the Red Chamber, many classic illustrated works emerged, such as Qian Gaoqi's Illustrated Poems of the Red Chamber and the stone-printed Complete Illustrated Dream of the Red Chamber with Enhanced Annotations and Images by the Shanghai Tongwen Bookstore. As for the edition with the most illustrations, it is the lead-printed Dream of the Red Chamber with Enhanced Annotations and Illustrations by Shanghai Guangbai Shuzhai during the Guangxu reign of the Qing Dynasty, which includes 240 illustrations—two per chapter.
This edition is the enhanced illustrated classic version of Dream of the Red Chamber, with the illustrations primarily selected from the stone-printed Complete Illustrated Dream of the Red Chamber with Enhanced Annotations and Images by the Shanghai Tongwen Bookstore. The first 80 chapters are mainly referenced against the Jiaxu, Jimao, and Gengchen versions of the Dream of the Red Chamber annotated by Zhishan Zhai. The last 40 chapters are mainly referenced against the Cheng Jia and Cheng Yi versions.