Collection replicates the look, feel and format of ancient classics using resurrected and updated materials and techniques, Zhu Yuan reports.

An expert checks a newly printed thread-bound book at Huabaozhai (China Treasure), a studio specializing in producing replicas of ancient Chinese books. (PHOTO PROVIDED TO CHINA DAILY)

For the hundreds of thousands of ancient Chinese books, some of which are the last remaining copies of their kind, there is almost no opportunity for ordinary people to see them with their own eyes, let alone touch or read them. They have to be kept in state libraries or private institutions, conserved as relics of the nation's cultural heritage.

It is important to develop technologies to preserve these books and repair those that have been partially damaged by worms or moisture and much is, indeed, being done in this respect.

Nevertheless, it has long been the dream of many scholars to have these ancient classics replicated with the same look and feel, so that their original elegant style, the thread bindings, beautiful handwriting and the seals of those who once kept them, as well as the sentiments of ancient scholars written between the lines, can be presented to readers.

Some publishing houses have made the effort. But replicated ancient books have not been published in series and their quality can vary.

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It was not until The Hundreds of Ancient Chinese Classic Books Remade was published by Huabaozhai (China's Treasure) Studio in 2018 that the books duplicated became better in quality than the originals, and many of the best editions of some well-known ancient books could be read in their original format.

There are usually several editions of the same classic ancient book, and the annotations by different scholars make a difference in their quality. So for that series, the selection of the best edition of each of the books was a concern, as it would reflect the overall quality of the whole set. A team was organized by experts to select from hundreds of thousands of ancient books kept in thousands of libraries.

Copies of The Hundreds of Ancient Chinese Classic Books Remade. (PHOTO PROVIDED TO CHINA DAILY)

Even after publication of the whole set, changes are constantly being made in terms of the edition of a particular book.

For example, for Records of Great Learning by Confucian philosopher Wang Yangming (1472-1529), the edition under the reign of Emperor Longqing (1537-72) of the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644), which was kept in Zhejiang Provincial Library, was initially used. Now, the edition printed under the reign of Emperor Jiajing (1522-66) of the Ming era has replaced the former edition. This edition, which is kept in the National Library of China in Beijing, is older and better in content.

The paper stock chosen also makes a huge difference to the quality of the replica books. The traditional paper, known as xuanzhi, used for traditional painting and calligraphy, is made of straw and bark and cannot be used as it is too soft and too easy for ink to spread if printed with traditional lithography technology.

There is machine-made paper for printing such books, but it leaves much to be desired in terms of quality.

So where does the paper to make the books come from? The technology for the making of such paper has long been lost.

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Jiang Fangnian's interest in ancient Chinese books led him to establish a mill in Fuyang, East China's Zhejiang province, in the early 1980s, where the technology of making this kind of ancient handmade printing paper was reinvented. Known as yuanshu paper, it is the same type of stock used for the printing of ancient Chinese books. Made of fresh bamboo and tree bark, it is harder than xuanzhi, but softer than modern paper, and is perfect for the replication of ancient classics.

Copies of The Hundreds of Ancient Chinese Classic Books Remade. (PHOTO PROVIDED TO CHINA DAILY)

Jiang Fengjun, daughter of Jiang Fangnian, compared the quality of the two kinds of traditional papers. She soaked the two kinds of papers in water for a month, the paper from her mill can still be used after drying up, but the other disintegrated into pulp. She put her handmade paper in the sunlight for a month, the words printed on it remained unchanged.

It is also in this mill that a special paper known as ciqing (ceramic blue) for the cover of such books is made. Again, the technique for making this kind of paper had also long been lost before it was reinvented at the mill.

Instead of modern printers and printing technology, updated traditional lithography is used for printing the books. Raw mineral pigment is applied rather than normal printing ink. Raw mineral materials are ground into fine powder, to which resin is added. Using such pigment, the ancient classic books, the contents of which were handwritten by ancient scholars on the pages, can be kept almost intact. The color, texture, even the marks left by bookworms and the uneven edges of Chinese characters left by the writing brush from the original classic books, are kept almost exactly the same.

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With the printing paper and technology of lithography, Jiang Fangnian established Huabaozhai and launched his business of printing thread-bound ancient Chinese books, which are known in Chinese as xianzhuangshu (thread-bound books). The development of the mill laid foundation for the printing of The Hundreds of Ancient Chinese Classic Books Remade.

This project was carried out under the direction of the cultural committee of China Democratic League Central Committee and the Ancient Books Preservation and Conservation Association of China. It has been listed by a State-owned cultural enterprises assets supervision and administration leading team as one of the programs for spreading China's book culture.

Copies of The Hundreds of Ancient Chinese Classic Books Remade. (PHOTO PROVIDED TO CHINA DAILY)

The series of books contains 102 titles, one from the Tang Dynasty (618-907), 38 from the Song Dynasty (960-1279), one from the Jin Dynasty (1115-1234), three from Mongolian editions, 18 from the Yuan Dynasty (1271-1368), 30 from the Ming Dynasty, and 11 from the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911). They were selected by experts of ancient books. The whole set comprises 1,152 books.

Jiang Fangnian's son, Jiang Shan, and daughter Jiang Fengjun inherited their father's career after he died in 2004 at the age of 54. Jiang Fengjun is running a studio called Langhuan－named after the heavenly library in Chinese mythology－in Beijing, where The Hundreds of Ancient Chinese Classic Books Remade and other thread-bound books are displayed and sold.

Li Zhizhong, ancient Chinese book expert and former director of the ancient classic book section of the National Library, praised the books as the best replicas of ancient classics that have been made.

It is the first time such classic books have been duplicated with resurrected ancient papermaking and lithography technologies since they were reprinted during the Qing Dynasty.

Jiang Fengjun has launched tour lectures nationwide on the knowledge of ancient Chinese books. In the lectures, she shows the books to the audience, letting them touch, feel and smell the paper and mineral pigment. They put handmade printing paper and machine-made paper into water to compare the different quality of the two traditional papers.

She just wants people to know that the copies of the ancient Chinese books can be made with resurrected and updated traditional means, and still have exactly the same look and feel, but with higher quality. While the originals lie in libraries, the duplicates can function as a special vehicle for modern readers to experience the special appeal of ancient Chinese books.

Contact the writer at zhuyuan@chinadaily.com.cn