Sections & Selections
On the Bestseller List: Bookshops and Printing for Profit
The rise of the book printing industry in the Sung dynasty is obvious. In addition to government editions, woodblock carving imprints were made by bookshops in various regions. A bookshop was generally run by an individual, and it was a handicraft profession involving the production and sale of books. Such bookshops began to appear approximately in the middle of the Northern Sung period. Printing books mostly for the purpose of making a profit, their imprints often followed trends in the marketplace. Among the publications, the largest proportion is composed of books for those preparing to take the civil service examinations. These are generally known as “bookshop print editions.” When the Sung house relocated south, the combination of trends involving enthusiastic scholars and a burgeoning economy led to Kiangnan bookshops increasing the variety and quantity of the books that they printed. With the fierce competition that ensued, there appeared “brand marks” that served both the purpose of identifying book rights as well as advertising products. For example, both the Ch’en Residence Bookshop run by Ch’en Ch’i and son as well as Yin Family Bookshop, located in Lin-an, printed books with the trademark of their respective stores. A bookshop might also print additional text at the end of a book to announce the quality and dependability of its proofreading and production, as in the case of “Kung-yang’s Commentary on the Spring and Autumn Annals” printed by Yü Jen-chung of Chien-an. All these features reveal the level of quality control and marketing strategies developed by bookshops in the Sung. This differs markedly from government and private print editions, making it one of the most distinctive features of this type of book.
Written by Ho Hsiu (Han Dynasty)
1191 Sung imprint by Yü Jen-chung of Chien-an
This book has an engraved colophon by a “Mr. Yü” added to the end of the preface by Ho Hsiu. This figure refers to Yü Jen-chung, who opened a bookshop in Chien-an that went by the name “Wan-chuan (Thousand-volume) Hall”. Famous in the Southern Sung, it was responsible for engraving many classics used by scholars for writing and preparing for civil service examinations.
Former attribution to K’ung An-kuo (Han Dynasty) with commentaries by K’ung Ying-ta and phonetic explanation by Lu Teh-ming (T’ang Dynasty)
1195-1200 Sung dynasty imprint of the residence of the District Defender of Wei (Chien-an) with Yüan additions and Ming revisions
This book is based on the eight-line edition and includes an explanation by Lu Teh-ming, Erudite in the Directorate of Education, as served as a prototype for the book format of commentaries with explanations as an addendum. Although there is an identifying line at the end of the first section, it is unknown to whom the District Defender of Wei refers. However, judging from the style of book, it appears to be an imprint from Chien-an.
Written by Ch’ang Chien (T’ang Dynasty)
Sung imprint of the Ch’en Residence Bookshop in Lin-an
Ten lines per half page and 18 characters per line
The Ch’en Residence refers to the bookshop opened by Ch’en Ch’i and his son. Located in the Mu-ch’in ward of the Southern Sung capital Lin-an, it specialized in engraving poetry collections of less notable figures of the T’ang and Sung dynasty. Known as a “book-booth edition”, most were produced with beautiful and upright characters.
Traditionally ascribed to K’ung An-kuo (Han Dynasty) with explanations by Lu Teh-ming (T’ang Dynasty)
Southern Sung imprint
This is a reference book that was used for preparing for the civil service examinations. The small size of the imprint made it convenient for traveling and sometimes was snuck into the examination hall by less scrupulous examinees, evidently for cheating. Since it was a book prepared when the demand appeared, very few have survived, making this quite precious.