Selected Tang and Song Literature (Classified under Collections - 93)

Author: Emperored in the Third Year of the Qianlong Reign
Publisher:
Publishing Date: 2005-05-01
Features: In the Thirty-Seventh Year of the Qianlong Reign, Emperor Hongli issued an edict to establish the Siku Quanshu (Complete Collection of the Four Treasuries). The following year, he decreed the compilation of the "Siku Quanshu." Since the Tang and Song dynasties, successive dynasties had formed the tradition of collecting and compiling classic texts. The Tang Dynasty had works such as "Yiwen Lüju" (Compendium of the Manners and Arts of the World) and "Bitaishu Chao" (North Hall Book), while the Song Dynasty had "Taiping Yujie" (Imperial Encyclopedia of the Great Peace). Especially noteworthy is the "Yongle Dadian" (Great Canon of Yongle) compiled during the Yongle era of the Ming Dynasty, comprising 22,937 volumes and including over 7,800 types of books, truly a monumental work. During the Kangxi and Yongzheng reigns of the Qing Dynasty, the Qing court compiled the "Jin Gu Tu Shu Ji Cheng" (Complete Collection of Ancient and Modern Works), consisting of 10,000 volumes.
By the time of the Qianlong era, Zhu Yun, the Academician of Anhui, believed that the "Yongle Dadian" did not fully encompass all existing books. Therefore, he submitted a memorial proposing the widespread collection of lost texts from the and the establishment of specialized institutions to collate and edit the "Yongle Dadian" held by the Hanlin Academy. As a result, Emperor Qianlong issued an edict to establish the Siku Quanshu Commission, appointing over 160 renowned scholars such as Ji Yun to begin compiling the "Siku Quanshu."
The publication and distribution of this book hold undeniable positive significance, whether for the research and organization of historical documents or for the study of ancient Chinese history and thought culture. At the same time, since the "Siku Quanshu Huiyao" (Essentials of the Siku Quanshu) was already a masterpiece in itself, coupled with modern printing technology, this set of books is naturally worthy of becoming a treasure for libraries of all sizes and personal collections.