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An Encyclopaedia on Chinese History and Literature
The Qing-period 清 (1644-1911) book Gujin tushu jicheng 古今圖書集成 "Complete collection of pictures and books of old and modern times" is the largest encyclopaedia of premodern China. It has a total length of 10,000 juan and was compiled on imperial order of the Kangxi Emperor 康熙帝 (r. 1661-1722) between the years 1701 and 1706 under the supervision of Chen Menglei 陳夢雷 (1650-1741) and Jiang Tingxi 蔣廷錫 (1669-1732). The original title of the draft was Gujin tushu huibian 古今圖書彙編. In 1722, the Yongzheng Emperor 雍正帝 (r. 1722-1735) ordered Jiang Tingxi to revise the draft. The revision was finished in 1726, and the title was changed the known Gujin tushu jicheng.
The encyclopaedia is divided into six parts (bian 編) with 32 "canons" (dian 典, in the draft called zhi 志 "treatise") dealing with 6,117 themes. The index alone has a volume of 40 juan. The individual parts (bu 部) are composed of 9 different types of literary allusions, namely:
| 彙考 | huikao | assembled explanations |
| 總論 | zonglun | general discussion |
| 圖表 | tubiao | illustrations and tables |
| 列傳 | liezhuan | quotations from biographies |
| 藝文 | yiwen | literary allusions |
| 選句 | xuanju | selected verses |
| 紀事 | jishi | historical events |
| 雜錄 | zalu | miscellaneous records |
| 外編 | waibian | further records |
Not all types of allusions are used for each entry. The encyclopaedia quotes from 3,525 books, with 77,000 quotations in total, some of them used several times for different themes.
| 〖彙考〗 | Assembled explanations |
|---|---|
| 《詩經·大雅·大明》：「親迎于渭，造舟為梁。」（朱註）造作梁橋也。作船於水，比之而加版於其上以通行者，即今之浮橋也。《傳》曰：「天子造舟，諸侯維舟，大夫方舟，士特舟。」《張子》曰：「造舟為梁，文王所制，而周世遂以為天子之禮也。」（大全）《爾雅》注曰：「造舟，比船為橋，維舟連四船，方舟併兩船，特舟，單船。」 | The Major Ode Daming of the Classic Shijing "Book of Songs" says, "And in person [he] met [her] on the Wei. Over it he made [a bridge of] boats." Zhu Xi's (1130-1220) commentary explains that this means to construct a bridge. Boats are brought to the water, side by side, with planks added [on top] to allow passage [from one to the next]. This method is the same as the floating bridge of our times. The Commentary (?) elucidates that the Son of Heaven makes boats (i.e., boat bridges), the regional lords maintain boats, the grand masters make square boats, and the servicemen use singular boats. Master Zhang [Zai] (1020-1077) clarifies that the use of boats as a bridge was established by King Wen of the Zhou dynasty, and it thus became a ritual for the Son of Heaven. (From the Daquan) [Guo Pu's] commentary on the glossary Erya clarifies that 'to make boats' means to use boats as bridges. A 'maintained boat' connects four boats. A 'square boat' connects two boats, and a 'singluar boat' refers to a single boat. |
| 〖總論〗 | General discussions |
| （明）丘濬《大學衍義補·道涂[=塗]之備》:《詩·大明》篇曰：「親迎于渭，造舟為梁。」（ 臣按：造舟謂聯比其船而加版於其上以為橋。杜預所謂「河橋」，是也。）《春秋·昭公元年》，「秦公子鍼奔晉，造舟于河。」 （臣按：《初學記》「公子鍼造舟處在蒲坂夏陽津」 ，今蒲津浮橋是也。）《爾雅》：「天子造舟，諸侯維舟，大夫方舟，士特舟，庶人乘泭。」（ 臣按：「造舟」、「維舟」 、「方舟」 即今所謂浮橋，特舟即今渡船，泭即今𥱼筏。） | Qiu Jun's (1421-1495) Daxue yanyi bu from the Ming period, ch. Dao tu zhi bei, discusses: The ode Daming of the Shijing says, "And in person [he] met [her] on the Wei. Over it he made [a bridge of] boats." (Servant [Qiu] comments: To "make boats" is to say that the boards of the boat are joined together, and additional planks are placed on top to form a bridge. This is what Du Yu (222-284) refers to as the 'River Bridge'.) The "Spring and Autumn Annals (ch. Zhaogong 1) narrate how "The ducal son of Qin, Zhen, fled to Jin by building boats on the river." (Servant [Qiu] comments: The [encyclopaedia] Chuxueji quotes the phrase as 'The ducal son of Qin, Zhen, built boats at Puban, at the Xiayang Ford.' The floating bridge at Pujin is still in existence today.) The Erya says, "The Son of Heaven makes boats, the regional lords maintain boats, the grand masters make square boats, the servicemen use singular boats, and the common people use rafts." (Servant [Qiu] comments: The expressions 'make boats', 'maintain boats', and 'square boats' refer to what we now call a floating bridge. 'Singular boat' refers to what is now known as a ferry. 'Raft' refers to what we now call a bamboo raft.) |
| 〖藝文〗 | Examples from literature |
| [唐]元[=玄]宗《石橋銘》： 「梁園勝躅， 碣館佳遊。 苔深石暗， 山斜路幽。 橋非七夕， 節是三秋。 爰停弄杼， 共此淹留。」 |
Emperor Taizong's (r. 712-756) "Inscription of the Stone Bridge" [from the Tang period], says: The garden of the bridge is a splendid place, With pavilions and monuments in graceful space. Moss thickens the stone, casting shadows so deep, The mountain slopes gently, the path winding steep. This bridge is not for the Seventh Night's fête, But for the autumn's cycle, a perfect date. Here we pause, weaving threads in our hand, And together we linger, in this quiet land. |
| 〖選句〗 | Selected verses |
| （漢）揚雄《甘泉賦》：「歷倒景而絕飛梁兮，浮蠛蠓而撇天。」 張衡《思元賦》：「伏靈龜以負坻兮，亙螭龍之飛梁。」 （晉）潘岳《閒居賦》：「浮梁黝以徑度，靈臺傑其高峙。」 （梁）江淹《赤虹賦》：「視鱣岫之吐翕，看黿梁之交積。」 （陳）徐陵《與楊僕射書》：「河橋馬度，寧非宋典之姦；關路雞鳴，皆曰田文之客。」 | Yang Xiong's (53 BCE-18 CE) "Rhapsody of Sweet-Fountain Palace" from the Han period says, "Traversing the inverted landscape, where the flying beams of the bridge are severed, Floating like flies [in the air] and flying off to the sky." Zhang Heng's (78-139) "Rhapsody of the Origins of Thought" says, "The numinous turtle crouches down, carrying the mound; Spanning the flying bridge of the serpentine dragon." Pan Yue's (247-300) "Rhapsody of Dwelling in Leisure" from the Jin period says, "The floating bridge is dark and narrow, And the spiritual platform stands tall and magnificent." Jiang Yan's (444-505) "Rhapsody of the Red Rainbow" from the Liang period says, "Look at the puffing and sighing of the fish-shaped peaks, And watch the accumulation of the turtle bridge's intersecting layers." Xu Ling's (507-583) "Letter to Chief Administrator Yang" from the Chen period says, "The river bridge is crossed by horses, Is it not the treachery of the Song Dynasty? On the pass, the rooster crows, All speak of the retainers of Tian Wen." |
| 〖紀事〗 | Historical Events |
| 《竹書紀年》：「周穆王三十七年，伐楚，大起九師，東至於 九江，架黿鼉以為梁。」《水經注》：「霸水，古曰滋水，秦穆公更名，以顯霸功。水上有橋，謂之霸橋。」《史記·蘇秦傳》：「秦說燕王曰：『信如尾生，與女子期於梁下，女子不來，水至不去，抱柱而死』。」 | The Bamboo Annals say, "In the thirty-seventh year of King Mu of Zhou, he attacked Chu, raised nine armies, and marched east to the Nine Rivers. He used turtles and alligators to build a bridge." The Commented Classic of Rivers says, "The Ba River, which was called Zhi River in ancient times, was renamed by Duke Mu of Qin to highlight his achievements in dominance (see hegemons). There is a bridge over the river, known as the Ba Bridge." The biography of Su Qin in the Shiji says that Su Qin told the King of Yan: "Faith is like the story of Wei Sheng. He made an appointment with a woman beneath a bridge's beam. The woman did not come, and when the water began to rise, he did not leave, but instead embraced the pillar and died." |
| 〖雜錄〗 | Miscellaneous records |
| 《詩經·曹風》：「維鵜在梁，不濡其翼。」《小雅》：「鴛鴦在梁，戢其左翼。」「有鶖在梁，有鶴在林。」《禮記·月令》：「獺祭魚，然後漁人入澤梁。」 | The airs of Cao of the Shijing say, "The pelican is on the dam, And will not wet his wings!" The Minor Odes say, "The mandarin ducks are on the dam, With their left wings gathered up," and "The marabou is on the dam; The crane is in the forest." The Monthly Ordinances of the ritual Classic Liji say, "When the otter sacrificed its fish, the foresters entered the meres and dams." |
| 〖外編〗 | Further records |
| 《述異記》：「秦始皇作石橋于海上，欲過觀海，日出處有神人驅石去不速，神人鞭之皆流血。今石橋其色猶赤。」 | The Shuyiji says, "The First Emperor of Qin (r. 246-210 BCE) had a stone bridge over the sea built, intending to cross and view the ocean. At the place where the sun rises, a divine figure appeared and drove the stones away unbidden. Whenever the divine figure struck it with a whip, the stone would bleed. Even today, stone bridges retain a red hue." |
There are four different prints of the Gujin tushu jicheng. The first, a moveable-letter print, was produced in 1728 by the Imperial Printing Shop in the Hall of Military Glory (Wuying Dian 武英殿). The second print was created by the British newspaper publisher Ernest Major (1830?-1908, Chinese name Meizha 美查) in Shanghai between 1884 and 1888, in 1,500 copies. In 1889 the imperial court ordered the Foreign Office (Zongli yamen 總理衙門) to negotiate with the Tongwen Press 同文書局 in Shanghai to publish a further edition. The print was finished in 1894. The 100 copies included 24 volumes of corrigenda (Kaozheng 考證).
In 1934, the Zhonghua Shuju Press 中華書局 in Shanghai published an edition in reduced size. In 1985, the Zhonghua Shuju Press and the Ba-Shu Press 巴蜀書社 reprinted the 1934 edition in 82 (in total 121) volumes.
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Image and text explaining the declination of the sun through the "cold and warm" seasons of the year, as caused by its "vicinity and distance" (Rilun yuanjin fen hanshu tu[shuo] 日輪遠近分寒暑圖[說]). |
There is a supplement published in 1977 by the Taiwanese Dingwen Press 鼎文書局 that is called Gujin tushu jicheng xubian chugao 古今圖書集成續編初稿 "A tentative draft of a supplement to the Complete Collection". This book of 78 juan length imitates the structure of the original encyclopaedia. It makes use of sources written after the Kangxi reign-period or even after the Qing period, like the treatises of the Qingshigao 清史稿, the Da-Qing huidian 大清會典, Qingchao xu wenxian tongkao 清朝續文獻通考 or the Qingshilu 清實錄.
| I. 天象 Celestial Matters (121 parts, 544 chapters) | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| 典 1. | 乾象 | Qianxiang | The Heavens |
| 2. | 歲功 | Suigong | The year |
| 3. | 曆法 | Lifa | Astronomy and arithmetics |
| 4. | 庶徵 | Shuzheng | Strange phenomena |
| II. 方輿 Geography (1'187 parts, 2'144 chapters) | |||
| 5. | 坤輿 | Kunyu | The Earth |
| 6. | 職方 | Zhifang | Political divisions of China |
| 7. | 山川 | Shanchuan | Mountains and rivers |
| 8. | 邊裔 | Bianyi | Foreign countries |
| III. 明倫 Human Relationship (2'922 parts, 2'604 chapters) | |||
| 9. | 皇極 | Huangji | The Emperor |
| 10. | 宮闈 | Gongwei | The Imperial Household |
| 11. | 官常 | Guanchang | The government service |
| 12. | 家範 | Jiafan | Family relationships |
| 13. | 交誼 | Jiaoyi | Social intercourse |
| 14. | 氏族 | Shizu | Clan and family names |
| 15. | 人事 | Renshi | Human affairs |
| 16. | 閨媛 | Guiyuan | Womankind |
| IV. 博物 Science (1'130 parts, 1'656 chapters) | |||
| 17. | 藝術 | Yishu | Arts, occupations, and professions |
| 18. | 神異 | Shenyi | Religion |
| 19. | 禽蟲 | Qinchong | The animal kingdom |
| 20. | 草木 | Caomu | The vegetable kingdom |
| V. 理學 Scholarship (237 parts, 1'220 chapters) | |||
| 21. | 經籍 | Jingji | Canonical and other literature |
| 22. | 學行 | Xingxue | The conduct of life |
| 23. | 文學 | Wenxue | Branches of literature |
| 24. | 字學 | Zixue | Characters and writing |
| VI. 經濟 Governance (450 parts, 1'832 chapters) | |||
| 25. | 選舉 | Xuanju | The examination system |
| 26. | 銓衡 | Quanheng | The official career |
| 27. | 食貨 | Shihuo | Food and commerce |
| 28. | 禮儀 | Liyi | Ceremonies |
| 29. | 樂律 | Yuelü | Music |
| 30. | 戎政 | Rongzheng | Military administration |
| 31. | 祥刑 | Xiangxing | Law and punishment |
| 32. | 考工 | Kaogong | Industries and manufactured articles |