| Hsuan-ho feng-shih Kao-li
t'u-ching Hsu Ching (1091-1153), Sung Dynasty Chiang-yin Imprint from the Hsu Collection of 1167
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"Outside records" were a source of information in ancient China for learning about foreign lands. This imprint was made in 1167 and represents the earliest known edition of this book about Korea. China and Korea, due to their geographical proximity, have long maintained diplomatic ties. As a result, information about Korea in Chinese sources tends be quite plentiful. In addition to individual references to Korean culture, many Chinese texts dealt specifically with the kingdom. Although some have survived, Hsu Ching's text is probably the richest. It is also the oldest, making it an important source for studying ancient Sino-Korean relations and diplomacy. Hsu Ching completed the text, which originally included illustrations, in 1124. However, the illustrations were lost with the fall of the Northern Sung in 1126. In 1167, Hsu Ching's nephew had the text printed for the first time. Although unable to retrieve the illustrations, he continued to refer to them in the title of the imprint. Until the middle Ming dynasty (1368-1644), no other imprints were made. This sole surviving example of the 1167 printing is also noted for the exceptional carving of the standard-script characters. |
