Chou-li shu
Annotated by Cheng Hsuan (Han Dynasty [206 BC-AD 220]); commentary by Chia Kung-yen (T'ang Dynasty [618-907])
Southern Sung Imprint of the Shao-hsi Era (1190-1194)

    Woodblock editions of the Classics were made as early as the Five Dynasties (907-960) and based on engraved stone classics of the previous T'ang dynasty. They included annotations compiled since the Six Dynasties (220-589) but not commentaries, which were carved starting around 988 in the Sung dynasty. Since the commentaries were printed alone, they were known as "commentary-only editions." Surviving examples, such as this one, are now very rare.

    A commentary-only edition was read along with the original classic. This was not always convenient, so by the 12th century, editions combining commentaries with the relevant classics appeared. The government organization responsible for publishing them was under the direction of Huang T'ang, so they were called "Huang T'ang editions." Each half sheet of paper had eight vertical lines of text, so they were also known as "eight-line editions." According to a local catalogue from the Yuan dynasty, a total of 12 eight-line editions were printed that combined the classics and their commentaries. Furthermore, modern scholarship has shown that this trend began with "Chou-li shu," making this imprint even more important.

    This book is divided into fifty "chapters" (called chuan), which are often divided into several volumes. The number of chuan here differs from the 42 often found in later editions, because it follows the order of the commentary-only edition. The commentaries were placed right below the classic text, followed by the annotations and their commentaries. This aspect preserves traces of the evolution from commentary-only editions to combined editions, making this imprint important to the study of Chinese rare books. Since the characters changed with subsequent printings, this imprint provides documentary evidence for the changes. Surviving examples of eight-line editions of the classics are very rare. Except for fragmentary examples in other collections, this book is the only complete surviving eight-line edition.