What is it about?

In Ming dynasty China (1368-1644), book collecting transformed from an elite hobby into a widespread passion. Scholars and wealthy individuals amassed enormous private libraries, sometimes trading concubines or selling land to acquire rare texts. This bibliophilic craze led to innovations in book preservation, classification, and circulation. Famous collectors like Fan Qin and Mao Jin built legendary libraries housing tens of thousands of volumes, contributing greatly to the preservation of Chinese literary heritage.

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Why is it important?

The Ming dynasty's book collecting frenzy laid critical groundwork for China's intellectual future. Collectors' efforts to catalogue, preserve, and share rare texts ensured the survival of countless important works. Their passion drove advancements in printing technology and library science. By making private collections more accessible, these bibliophiles helped democratize knowledge in late imperial China. Understanding this phenomenon provides key insights into the transmission of culture and the roots of China's rich literary tradition.

Perspectives

Delving into the world of Ming book collectors revealed an unexpected realm of obsession and adventure. These weren't stuffy scholars hoarding dusty tomes - they were passionate hunters chasing literary treasures across the empire. Their stories of sacrificing fortunes and trading loved ones for books seem almost unbelievable today. Yet their mania for collecting ultimately served a noble purpose, preserving crucial texts through tumultuous times. I hope this article highlights the often overlooked contributions of book lovers to cultural preservation and dissemination.

Ashton Ng
University of Cambridge

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This page is a summary of: Bibliophilia: the Passion of Ming Dynasty Private Book Collectors, Ming Qing Yanjiu, October 2020, Brill,
DOI: 10.1163/24684791-12340051.
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