SCHOOL OF INTERNATIONAL LETTERS AND CULTURES
Chinese 500: Chinese Bibliography and Research Methods
The Traditional Catalog
I. Surveys of traditional bibliography.
Chang Bide 昌彼得. Zhongguo muluxue ziliao xuanji 中國目錄學資料選集. Taibei: Wen shi zhe chubanshe,
1972. EAL 9409 5668
———. Zhongguo muluxue 中國目錄學. Taibei: Wen shi zhe chubanshe, 1973. EAL 9766 6022
Liu Jiabi 劉家壁. Zhongguo tusushi ziliao ji 中國圖書史資料集. Hong Kong: Longmen, 1974. 9409 7037
L Shaoyu 呂紹虞. Zhongguo muluxue shi gao 中國目錄學史稿. Hefei: Anjui jiaoyu chubanshe, 1984. EAL
Z3101 A2 L8
Nagasawa Kikuya 長澤規矩也. Shina shoseki kaidai, shomoku, shoshi no bu 支那書籍解題書目書誌之部.
Tokyo: Bunkyō , 1940, rpt. 1952. EAL 9523 7358
Woo Kang. Histoire de la bibliographie chinoise. Paris: Presses Universitaires de Frances, 1938. Main DS703.1
.w85
Xu Shiying 許世瑛. Zhongguo muluxue shi中國目錄學史. Taibei: Zhonguo wenhua daxue chubanshe, 1982.
EAL Z3102.5 H75 1982
Yao Mingda 姚名達. Zhongguo muluxue shi 中國古目錄學史. 1937; rpt.: Shanghai: Shangwu, 1957; Taibei:
Shangwu, 1967. EAL 9408 4123
Yu Jiaxi 余家錫. Muluxue fawei 目錄學發微. Beijing: Zhonghua shuju, 1963. EAL 9409 8408
II. Classification system.
Tsien Tsuen-hsuin. "A History of Bibliographic Classification in China." Library Quarterly 22(1952):307–24.
Zhang Shunhui 張舜徽. Zhongguo gudai shiji jiaodu fa 中國古代史籍校讀法. Beijing: Zhonghua chubanshe,
1962:65–76; rpt.: Liu Jiabi 271–82.
III. Classified bibliographies.
The single most important biliographical work is the selection of annotations to the massive Siku quanshu
四庫全書(hereafter SK) an imperial collection completed by order of the Qianlong emperor. During the late
18th century, Qianlong ordered all books in the empire to be collected and sent to the capital. There, in 1782,
under the auspices of Ji Yun 紀昀,the work was completed. The literary works for the SK were gathered from
several sources: 1) works written by imperial edict from the time of Kangxi to Qianlong, 2) works kept in the
imperial library and at court for the emperor's use, 3) works contributed by officials in various provinces, 4)
works contributed by private collectors, and 5) works selected from the Ming encyclopedia, the Yongle dadian
永樂大典. Works selected for entry include: 1) works from prior generations that instructed on "proper moral
behaviour," 2) commentaries, textual criticism, and those extant works of the Hundred Schools that were
thought of "practical value," 3) collections of prose and poetry of famous scholars. Works that were excluded
from entry in the SK included: 1) works on unofficial matters, such as how to write letters or pass the civil
service examination, 2) works whose authors gained their fame through "flashy or meaningless" style rather
than solid scholarship, 3) any anti-Manchu work—whether explicit or implicit, 4) work by authors of
questionable moral behaviour, 5) any work in the Buddhist or Taoist canon that included religious incantations,
and 6) poetry that was designed to be sung.
Qianlong's stated reason for compiling the work was 為天地立心為生民立卸為往聖繼絕學為萬世開太平—
"to establish the mind on behalf of heaven and earth, to establish life for the people, to continue the cut-off
scholarship of past sages, and to open the way to peace for eternity." This quote, found in the first of the seven
editions of SK that were completed was the formal reason; others included a desire to preserve fine literary
works, to compile a collection of Confucian materials that would rival the size and complexity of the Taoist and
Buddhist canons, and to continue the work done in the Yongle dadian. We must consider, however, that this
was, among other things, a way to employ Chinese scholars who still felt the sting of living under alien rule.
We may also consider the fact that Qianlong wanted to repress writings critical of the Manchus, of his own
birth, of court and clan struggles, and of his attempts to repress both Neo-Confucian and stale literary learning
(as represented by his "repression of encyclopedia scholarship.") He used the compilation as a way of pointing
out the corruption and weakness of the Ming and thereby substantiate Qing rule. Finally, it is clear that it also
satisfied a great deal of personal vanity. For a history of the SK, see:
Goodrich, Luther C. The Literary Inquisition of Ch'ien-Lung. Studies in Chinese and Related Civilizations,
no. 1. Baltimore: Waverly Press, 1935
Guy, Kent. R. The Emperor's Four Treasuries: Scholars and the State in the Late Ch'ien-lung Era. Harvard
East Asian Monographs, no. 129. Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 1987. UCB Main AC149.S73
G891 1987
Ren Songru 任松如. Siku quanshu dawen 四庫全書答問. Shanghai: Shangwu, 1929.
The catalog that accompanies the SK , the Siku quanshu zongmu tiyao 四庫全書提要 (hereafter SKTY)
contains descriptive notes on 3461 works copied into the SK; at the end of each of its sections, under the
subheading "bibliography of extant works" 存目, it also includes notes on 6793 works not copied into the SK.
This classified bibliography, the greatest and most inclusive annotated bibliography every compiled in China,
has been reprinted many times (including at least 5 editions since 1985). However, the edition listed directly
below is, I feel, the best currently available, since it assembles the SKTY and two other works together in
punctuated, typeset form, and provides a four-corner index for each:
Wang Yunwu 張舜徽, ed. Heyin Siku quanshu
zongmu tiyao ji Siku weishou shumu Jinhui shumu
合印四庫全書總目提要及四庫未收書目禁燬書目. 4 Vols. Taibei: Shangwu yinshuguan, 1976, includes:
Ji Yun 紀昀, et. al. Siku quanshu zongmu tiyao 四庫全書總目提要.
For Ji Yun's biography, see Arthur Hummel, Eminent Chinese of the Ch'ing. 2 Vols. Washington, D. C.:
U. S. Postal Service, 1942, Vol. 1, pp. 121–23.
Ruan Yuan 院元. Siku weishou shumu 四庫未收書目.
For Ruan Yuan's biography, see Arthur Hummel, Eminent Chinese of the Ch'ing, Vol. 1, pp. 399–402.
Notes on 173 important works overlooked by the SK editors; it also includes an unfortunately
unindexed list of four categories of books proscribed during the Qing.
Ying Lian 英廉, et. al. Jinhui shumu 禁燬書目.
Contains lists of completely banned (burned) books and selections cut from other works from texts
submitted by various regional organizations for selection into the SK.
Since the original woodblock edition of SKTY was so massive, the editors also made an abridgement, which is
an incredibly useful desktop reference. This abridgement gives a shorter version of notes in the SKTY, but
treats only a third as many entries—3461. The following edition is the best, since it is punctuated and contains
a four-corner index:
Chi Yun 紀昀, et al. Siku tiyao jianming mulu 四庫提要簡明目錄. 2 Vols. Beijing: Gudian wenxue
chubanshe, 1957, unauthorized photoreproduction, Taibei: Heluo tushu chubanshe, n.d.
The SKTY has spawned its own series of texts that supplement it, discuss it, give its history, etc. While many
of these works provide supplementary annotations to the SKTY, some also check the reliability of its
information against extant rare editions in major libraries in China or Japan. The most important of the works
are:
Yu Jiaxi 余嘉錫, ed. Siku tiyao bianzheng 四庫提要辨證. 4 Vols. Beijing: Zhonghua shuju, 1980, rev. ed
(orig. Beijing: Kexue chubanshe, 1958, 3 vols.).
This is a set of meticulous notes making corrections or additions to the SKTY. Although there is no
index, it follows the order of SKTY. A valuable corrective to the original.
Hu Yuqin 胡玉縉, comp. and Wang Xinfu 王欣夫, ed. Siku quanshu zongmi tiyao buzheng
四庫全書總目提要補正. 2 Vols. Beijing: Zhonghua shuju, 1964, rev. ed (orig. Beijing: Kexue chubanshe,
1958, 3 vols.).
Quotes portions of the SKTY notices on over 2300 works with additional, often voluminous annotations
incorporating the findings of modern scholarship. Punctuated and with four-corner index.
Cui Fuzhang 崔富章, comp. Siku quanshu zongmi tiyao buzheng 四庫全書總目提要補正. Hangzhou:
Hangzhou daxue chubanshe, 1990.
An excellent work that compares entries in SKTY with rare editions found in major libraries in China.
Annotations to about 500 entries; this is really a valuable work for establishing editions. No index, but
appears to follow format of SKTY.
One major work, begun under the auspices of the Commercial Press (Shangwu yinshuguan) in Shanghai, and
completed in Taiwan under the editorship of Wang Yunwu, is the
Wang Yunwu 王雲五, ed. Xuxiu Siku quanshu tiyao 續修庫全書總目. 12 vols. Taipei: Dongfang wenhua
shiye weiyuanhui, 1971.
This is an annotated bibliography of 10, 700 works. The notes are similar in style and content to those
in the SKTY and are similarly grouped under the four traditional classifications of classics, history,
philosophy, and belles-lettres. The compilers concentrated on works that 1) were public when SKQS
was compiled but which were not included, 2) works completed after the SKQS, and 3) works that were
included in the SKTY, but which have appeared in better and more complete editions since. The first
category includes numerous Buddhist canons and commentaries, more than 600 Taoist works, novels
and opera libretti, books classified as prohibited, and works of Ming authors held in low regard by the
editors of the SKQS. The second category consists of works by those who were alive when SKQS was
compiled (hence not included) and works from the post SKQS period until the Republican era.
Obviously, proscribed and banned works are an important part of SKQS lore. Book banning has a long history
in China, the earliest and most notorious being Qin Shihuangdi's burning of all philosophical works in the Qin.
Various ages have banned books because of their prurient, immoral, or politically incorrect content. Two works
that are extremely important in determining which books were banned (and why) are:
An Pingqiu 安平秋, and Zhang Peiheng 章培恆eds. Zhongguo jinshu daguan 中國禁書大觀. Shanghai:
Shanghai wenhua chubanshe, 1990.
Contains a short history of book banning in China, and gives short histories of the banning of 220
important works. Also includes a dynasty-by-dynasty list of banned works, indexed by radical-stroke
order.
Lei Mengchen 雷夢辰. Qingdai gesheng jinshu huikao 清代各省禁書彙考. Beijing: Shumu wenxian
chubanshe, 1990.
More interesting to the historian, gives a province-by-province list of banned works in the Qing;
includes original memorials that accompanied lists
Finally, not all books are known throughout their lives by the same name.
Du Xinfu 杜信孚. Tongshu yiming tongjian 同書異名通檢. Suzhou: Jiangsu renmin wenxue chubanshe,
1982, rev. ed. of Hong Kong: Taiping shuju, 1963.
Jiangsu rev. ed. adds 1,700 more titles for a total of nearly 7,000 entries. Books with identical contents
and different titles to 1980, arranged by stroke-order of first character in book. No annotations to speak
of, book's value lies in giving variant titles. Hong Kong edition now clearly superseded.
IV. Historical catalogs.
For information on works now lost, or to judge authenticity or completeness of an older work that is still extant,
there are three main groups of sources: A) bibliographical chapters in the standard 24 histories, B)
bibliographies compiled to supplement dynastic histories, C) catalogs of imperial and private libraries.
A. Twenty of the first and second category are indexed in:
Hong, William 洪業, et al., comp. Yiwenzhi ershizhong zonghe yinde 藝文志二十種總合引得(Combined
Indices to Twenty Historical Bibliographies). Harvard Yenching Institute Index Series no. 10. Beijing:
Harvard Yenching Institute, 1933, various rpts.
Indices to authors and titles of all works included in the twenty bibliographies listed (and discussed) in
the preface. The first two bibliographies, from the Hanshu and the Suishu are particularly important in
tracing the history of editions.
1. "Yiwen zhi" 藝文志. Hanshu 漢書juan 30.
This is the earliest extant catalog. and is based on the Qilüe 七略(Seven Summaries) of Liu Xin
劉歆(ob.A.D. 23). In turn, the Qilüe was based on a work compiled by Liu Xin's father, Liu Xiang
劉向(79–8 .B.C.) called Bielu 別錄(Individuated List). In 26 B.C., under commission from the emperor,
Liu Xiang surveyed all of the books that had been collected in the imperial archives. Liu Xiang edited
and collate the material, after which he presented summaries to the emperor; these reports included a
table of contents and a brief description of the materials. Each description is usually followed by a
biography of the author or a historical account of the work itself. Upon his father's death, Liu Xin
assumed the task. He moved the books into a new library, the soon-to-be famous Tianlu ge天祿閣. Liu
collected the reports of his father, made a catalogue raisonne, and divided them into six classes,
preceded by a general summary. The seven sections are:
jilüe
輯略
"editorial summary"
liuyilüe
六藝略
"summary of the six arts=the
classics"
zhuzilüe
諸子略
"summary of the various
masters=thinkers"
shifulüe
詩賦略
"summary of poetry"
bingshulüe
兵書略
"summary of works on war"
shushulüe
術數略
"summary of techniques and
numerology=divination, cosmology, the occult, alchemy, etc."
fangjilüe
方技略
"summary of medical therapies"
This catalog was presented to the throne in 6 B.C. When Ban Gu 班固( 32–92) abridged the Qilüe and used
it as his bibliographical monograph in the History of the Han 漢書. He added a few titles unknown to Liu
Xin. It does, however, miss some of the materials produced in the decades between 6B.C. and the time of the
Hanshu's compilation in the second half of the first century A.D.
Editions and annotations:
Ban Gu 班固, comp. Hanshu yiwen zhi 新校漢書藝文志. Ann. Yan Shigu 顏師古. Shanghai: Shangwu
yinshu guan, 1957, rpt., Yang Jialuo 楊家駱, ed. Xinjiao Hanshu yiwen zhi 新校漢書藝文志. Zhongguo
muluxue mingzhu 中國目錄學名著, ser. 3. Taibei: Shijie shuju, 1963. EAL 9532 1160.08 1957; 9532
1160.08 1963
———.Hanshu "Yiwen zhi" zhujie 漢書藝文志注解. Ann. Yao Minghui 姚明煇. Shanghai: Dadong shuju,
1933. EAL
———.Hanshu "Yiwen zhi" zhujshi huibian 漢書藝文志注釋彙編. Ann. Chen Guoqing 陳國慶. Beijing:
Zhonghua shuju, 1983. EAL Z3102 P295
Gu Shi 顧實. Hanshu "Yiwen zhi" jiangshu 漢書藝文志講疏. Shanghai: Shangwu yinshuguan, 1925. EAL
9532 1600
Yao Zhenzong 姚振宗. Hanshu "Yiwen zhi" shibu 漢書藝文志拾補. 8 juan. ca. 1892. Kuaige shishi
shanfang congshu 快閣師石山房叢書. EAL 9530 4153 1936; rpt. in Ershiwu shi bubian
二十五史補編.EAL 2455.25 7650 suppl., v. 2.
Yao Zhenzong 姚振宗. Hanshu "Yiwen zhi" tiaoli 漢書藝文志條理. 8 juan. ca. 1892. Kuaige shishi
shanfang congshu 快閣師石山房叢書. EAL 9530 4153 1936; rpt. in Ershiwu shi bubian
二十五史補編.EAL 2455.25 7650 suppl., v. 2.
Translations and studies:
Suzuki Yoshijiro 鈴木由次郎. Kansho "Geimonshi"漢 書藝文志. Tokyo: Meitoku, 1968.
Koh Thong-ngee. "The Beginning of Chinese Bibliography: A Study of the Record of Literature in the
History of the Former Han Dynasty." Ts'e-fu, The Repository, no. 7/8 (1964):26–41; no. 9/10 (1964):1–26.
2. "Jingji zhi" 經籍志. Suishu 隋書. 4 juan .
This is the first extant catalogto be arranged by the "Four Categories" (sibu 四部) system and was intended
to be a comprehensive list of all works written prior to the Tang—including the titles of works that were
lost. The work is important because it contains the title of works that vanished before the Tang period.
Marred by excessively orthodox criteria for selection (i.e., their moral worth), the bibliography is divided
into four sections:
jingbu
經部
"classics section"
shibu
史部
"history section"
zibu
子部
"philosophy section"
jibu
集部
"belles lettres section"
It was originally written for a History of the Five Dynasties which was to include the dynasties of Liang,
Chen, Qi, Zhou, and Sui. Submitted to the emperor in 656.
Editions and annotations:
Yang Jialuo 楊家駱, ed. Xinjiao Suishu
"Jingji zhi" 新校隋書經籍志. Zhongguo muluxue mingzhu
中國目錄學名著, ser. 3. Taibei: Shijie shuju, 1963.
Yao Zhenzong 姚振宗. Suishu "Jingji zhi" tiaoli 隋書經籍志條理.
52 juan. ca. 1897. Kuaige shishi
shanfang congshu 快閣師石山房叢書.
Zhang Zongyuan 章宗源. Suishu "Jingji zhi" kaozheng 隋書經籍志考 "A. 13 juan. ca. 1790. In Ershiwu shi
bubian 二十五史補編.EAL 2455.25 7650 suppl., v. 4.
3. The Index also covers the following bibliographies. Note that some are compiled as parts of the standard
histories of the periods involved; others are Qing or later compilations meant as supplements to the
incomplete bibliographies of the histories. The index by William Hung lists some 40,000 titles from the
earliest period through the Qing; authors are also indexed. In addition to the two works listed above, which
are important for their coverage of the early period, the index covers:
Hou Han shu yiwen zhi 後漢書藝文志
by Yao Zhenzong 姚振宗
Sanguo zhi yiwen zhi
三國志藝文志
by Yao Zhenzong 姚振宗
Bu Jinshi yiwen zhi
補金史藝文志
by Wen Tingwu 文 武
Jiu Tang shu jingji zhi
舊唐書經籍志
by Liu Shang 劉晌
Tang shu yiwen zhi
唐書藝文志
by Ouyang Xiu 歐陽修
Bu Wudaishi yiwen zhi 補五代史藝文志
by Gu Huaisan 顧懷三
Sungshi yiwen zhi
宋史藝文志
by Toketo 托克托
Bu Sungshi yiwen zhi
補宋史藝文志
by Ni Can 倪燦
Bu Liao Jin Yuan yiwen zhi
補遼金元藝文志
by Ni Can 倪燦
Bu san shi yiwen zhi
補三史藝文志
by Jinmen Zhao 金門詔
Bu Yuan yiwen zhi
補元史藝文志
by Qian Daxin 錢大昕
Mingshi yiwen zhi
明史藝文志
by Zhang Tingyu 張逛玉
Qingshi gao yiwen zhi 清史稿藝文志
by Zhu Shiche 朱師轍
as well as the following bibliographical references:
Jinshu zongmu
禁書總目
Comprehensive Index to Banned Books
Quan hui shumu
全燬書目
Index to Works Completely Destroyed
Chou hui shumu
抽燬書目
Index to Works Partially Destroyed
Wei ai shumu
違礙書目
Index to Works Against Custom or Law
徵訪明季遺書目
Ming Period.
Weifang Mingji yishumu
Index to Works Handed Down from the
During the 1950's Shanghai's Commercial Press brought out a uniform edition of the dynastic
bibliographies with their Qing supplements; each volume is also accompanied by a four-corner index.
Hanshu yiwen zhi
1955
Suishu jingjizhi
1955–57
Tang shu jingji yiwen hezhi 1956
Songshi yiwen zhi
1957
Liao Jin Yuan shi yiwen zhi 1959
Ming shi yiwen zhi
1959
These were all reprinted without permission by Shijie shuju in the 1960's in Taipei.
These bibliographies usually do not give more than a brief account of a work—by so-and-so, in so many
juan, etc. You can, of course, sometimes find out what primary sources are available by looking at an
outstanding secondary work and observing what authors have used. This is not, however, a substitute for
looking yourself. Some secondary sources are now available that flesh out the information you can find
from above:
Ma Xianxing 馬先星. Hanshi cailiao yu Hanshi lunzhu zonghe mulu 漢史材料與漢史論著總合目錄.
Taibei: Zhonghua xueshu yuan, 1970. EAL 2545.9 7221
Wan Man 萬曼. Tang ji xu lu 唐集敘錄. Beijing: Zhonghua shuju, 1980. EAL; UCLA Oriental Z3108
L5W25 1980
Hervout, Yves. A Sung Bibliography. Hong Kong: Chinese University of Hong Kong, 1978. EAL Z3102.S77
Wolfgang Franke. An Introduction to the Sources of Ming History. Kuala Lumpur and Singapore: University
of Malaya Press, 1968. EAL 2720.9 5708 1968
Zhang Shunhui 張舜徽. Qingren wenji bielu 清人文集別錄. 2 vols. Beijing: Zhonghua xueshu yuan, 1963.
EAL
These are excellent (but not much emulated) works. Franke's work, in particular, begun in Chengdu in the
40's, is useful for its general and section introductions. You will also find that there have been many
significant individual works that have appeared in the past few years with increasing rapidity. Two
excellent examples are:
Zhou Caiquan 周采泉. Du ji shulu 杜集書錄. Shanghai: Shanghai guji chubanshe, 1986, over a 1,000 pages
with a four-corner index.
Liu Shangrong 劉尚榮.Su Shi zhuzuo banben luncong 蘇軾著作版本論叢. Chengdu: Ba Shu shushe, 1988
Nagasawa Kikuya 長澤規矩也, Shina shoseki kaidai, shomoku, shoshi no bu 支那書籍解題書目書誌之部.
Tokyo: Bunkyo , 1940, rpt. 1952. EAL 9523 7358
This last work introduces 450 library catalogs under four headings: 1. the treatises on bibliography from
the standard histories, 2. catalogs of official collections, 3. catalogs of libraries to 1940, and 4. catalogs of
private collections. Liang Zihan's work:
Liang Zihan 梁子涵. Zhongguo lidai shumu zonglu 中國歷代書目總錄. Taibei: Zhonghua wenhua shiye
weiyuanhui, 1953. EAL 9523 3913
This is the most comprehensive list of Chinese bibliographies available. It is not an annotated
bibliography, as is Nagasawa's, but has references to hundreds of works not mentioned elsewhere.
V. Catalogs of private libraries.
Catalogs of important private libraries are an excellent way to find out what editions were available at certain
periods in time. These private collections are valuable supplements to official bibliographies.
Wang Yaochen 王堯臣et al., comp. Chongwen zongmu 崇文總目. Recommended edition: Hou Zhibuzu zhai
congshu 後知不足齋叢書. 1884 ed.
A catalogue, completed in 1038 of the Song imperial library. Described in Teng and Biggerstaff, pp. 18–
19.
Chao Gongwu 晁公武, comp. Junzhai dushu zhi 崇文總目. Recommended edition: Junzhai dushu zhi
jiaozheng 崇文總目校證, coll. and annot., Sun Meng 孫猛, four-corner index by Wang Lixiang 王立翔.
Shanghai: Shanghai guji chubanshe, 1990.
A wonderful work of nearly 1,500 pages. Includes appendices on Chao's life, on historical treatment of his
work, on works mentioned in the bibliography that are still extant, and a final appendix that compares all
extant editions of the Junzhai dushu lu. A masterpiece of bibliographical research. A catalogue, completed
in 1151 of the Chao's personal library. Described in Teng and Biggerstaff, pp. 19–21.
Chen Zhensun 陳振孫, comp. Zhizhai shulu jieti 直齋書錄解題. Recommended edition: Zhizhai shulu jieti
直齋書錄解題, coll. and annot., Xu Xiaoman 徐小螿and Gu Meihua 顧美華. Shanghai: Shanghai guji
chubanshe, 1987.
A catalogue, completed in the mid 13th century of the author's personal library. This work has a good
four-corner index.
Ma Duanlin 馬端臨, comp. "Wenxian tongkao jingji kao" 文獻通考經籍考, in Wenxian tongkao 文獻通考.
A substantial list of works extant in the Song, drawing on the preceding two bibliographies, but also
including many supplementary materials. Generously annotated. Also indexed by the four-corner system.
Huang Yuji 黃虞稷, comp. Qianqing tang shumu 千頃堂書目. Best edition: Taibei: Shang wu yin shu kuan,
1983. EAL: UCLA Oriental AC 149 S699 1983 v.676
The most complete bibliography of Ming works; also the most reliable. Completed in the late 17th
century, it has supplements to Song, Liao, Jin, and Yuan at the end of each of its categories.
There are, of course, many other personal libraries in the period from Song to modern times. You can
check any of the standard works on publishing to find their names (including T. H. Tsien's massive work
for Science and Civilization in China). Important texts dealing with traditional libraries can be found in:
Li Xibi 李希泌and Zhang Shuhua 張椒華, comp. and annot. Zhongguo gudai cangshu yu jindai tushuguan
shiliao (Chunqiu zhi wu-si qianhou) 中國古代藏書與近代圖書館史料. Beijing: Zhonghua shuju, 1982.
This is a set of historical documents, letters, rescripts, etc., about the establishment of libraries and book
collections. A useful tool for learning about the rise of libraries in China.
Information on collectors can also be found in the following two dictionaries:
Jin Buying 金步瀛and Yang Licheng 楊立誠, ed. Zhongguo cangshu jia kaolue 中國藏書家考略, supp. and
annot. Yu Yunzhi 俞運之. Shanghai: Shanghai guji chubanshe, 1987.
Wang He 王河, ed. Zhongguo lidai cangshu jia cidian 中國歷代藏書家辭典. Shanghai: Tongji daxue
chubanshe, 1991.