Complete Notes on the Song Dynasty - (Second Edition) (Part 1)

Author: Zhu Yian
Publisher:
Publishing Date: 2006-01-01
Features: Song Dynasty notes are an important part of Song Dynasty literature, with a vast number of them. Complete Notes of the Song Dynasty is the third large-scale comprehensive collection in the field of Song Dynasty literature and history after Complete Poems of the Song Dynasty and Complete Prose of the Song Dynasty. It is a systematically compiled and comprehensive collection of Song Dynasty notes. Each volume of notes is accompanied by an academically valuable preface written by the compiler, including a brief biography of the author, the process of compilation, content evaluation, version information and sources, the base text used, and an overview of the collation. The entire book is printed in traditional Chinese characters in vertical columns with modern punctuation marks, making it an extremely valuable historical source. The brand-new exquisite packaging makes it an excellent gift and collection item, truly precious. The entire book is divided into approximately ten volumes, and this book is Volume 1 of the second series. Overall, Complete Notes of the Song Dynasty Volume 2 has the following characteristics:
First, based on a scientific definition of the term "notes," the book strives to collect as many notes written by Song Dynasty authors as possible, truly reflecting the "completeness" of Complete Notes of the Song Dynasty and avoiding omissions or disorganization. The compilers adhere to the principle that "notes are spontaneous records rather than deliberate works of literature." They are limited to collecting "specialized collections of Song Dynasty notes" and exclude "scattered single notes that have not been compiled into a complete work," as well as "specialized collections with focused themes and rigid structures," such as "poetry discussions, recorded sayings, or catalog-style works like The Tea Classic, Painting Anthologies, Records of Prominent Officials, or Official Precepts." Of course, they also exclude novels and biographies that narrate stories in a sequential manner.
Second, most of the Song Dynasty notes in this book are being published for the first time after collation and punctuation, reflecting the "newness" of the collection. Among the 49 notes in this volume, 13 have already been published and collated by Zhonghua Book Company and Shanghai, while 36 have been newly collated and published, accounting for over 73% of the total. These newly collated notes, though some may be short, contain content related to the social economy, politics, and customs of the time, leaving behind valuable historical materials for future generations, truly precious.
Lastly, compared to previously published collated notes, this book is relatively "accurate" in terms of collation. The compilers and collators of this book are mostly outstanding scholars in the fields of ancient Chinese history and literature, particularly in Tang and Song literature and history. Although it may be overly generous to call them the best in the world, they are undoubtedly first-class selections.
Note: The line breaks () are preserved as they are.