FIVE ART CATALOGUES
97
capital during the Chia Ch'ing and Tao Kuang eras, did not seem to be aware of the significance of the Kêng-tzu hsiao-hsia-chi. This was why when quoting a representative work among the art catalogues completed in the Ch'ing dynasty, Wu Yung-kuang only commended Kao Shih-ch'i's Chiang-ts'un hsiao-hsia-lu, and completely ignored Sun Ch'êng-chê's Kêng-tzu hsiao-hsia-chi. Finally it was only when Pan Chêng-wei wrote the preface for his own T'ing-fan-lou shu-hua-chi in the 23rd year of the Tao Kuang era (1843) that for the first time Sun and Kao's works were given equal attention. In other words, whilst Sun's Kêng-tzu hsiao-hsia-chi had already aroused attention among the scholars of Chiang Nan only half a century after its publication, it had to wait 184 years after its publication to be brought to the notice of Kwangtung art collectors. If Wu Yung-kuang's introduction of Kao Shih-ch'i's Chiang-ts'un hsiao-hsia-lu to Kwangtung can be regarded as some kind of contribution to the art collectors in his native place, then Pan Chêng-wei's recommendation of Sun Ch'êng-chê's Kêng-tzu hsiao-hsia-chi should in the same way be said to be one of his contributions to the Kwangtung art collectors. It was probably because of Pan's high recommendation of the Kêng-tzu hsiao-hsia-chi that this book later attracted the attention of two other Kwangtung art collectors. Therefore, although in the Chia Ch'ing and Tao Kuang eras, the earlier Kwangtung art collectors Wu Yung-kuang and Yeh Mêng-lung were not fully aware of the significance of the Kêng-tzu hsiao-hsia-chi, it seems that in the Hsien Fêng era, however, the later Kwangtung art collectors Liang Ting-nan and Kung Kuang-tao began to show a certain degree of respect for Sun's catalogue. Evidence for this can be obtained in the compilation system adopted in the art catalogues compiled by Liang and Kung.
Now let us examine the editing system set down in Liang Ting-nan's T'êng-hua-t'ing shu-hua-pa and Kung Kuang-tao's Yüeh-hsüeh-lou shu-hua-lu. In the former there is a preface written in the 5th year of the Hsien Fêng era (1855) by Liang T'ing-nan himself, the last part of which reads,
This time when I came again to the province, I lived in seclusion ... I decided to keep this part after making a revision. As to this edition, I would not dare to compare it with the two works compiled by Sun and Kao respectively. Moreover, in the matter of the editing system, my book differs from theirs on many points.
FIVE ART CATALOGUES
97
capital during the Chia Ch'ing and Tao Kuang eras, did not seem to be aware of the significance of the Kêng-tzu hsiao-hsia-chi. This was why when quoting a representative work among the art catalogues completed in the Ch'ing dynasty, Wu Yung-kuang only commended Kao Shih-ch'i's Chiang-ts'un hsiao-hsia-lu, and com- pletely ignored Sun Ch'êng-chê's Kéng-tzủ hsiao-hsia-chi. Finally it was only when Pan Chêng-wei wrote the preface for his own T'ing-fan-lou shu-hua-chi in the 23rd year of the Tao Kuang era (1843) that for the first time Sun and Kao's works were given equal attention. In other words, whilst Sun's Kêng-tzé hsiao-hsia-chi had already aroused attention among the scholars of Chiang Nan only half a century after its publication, it had to wait 184 years after its publication to be brought to the notice of Kwangtung art collectors. If Wu Yung-kuang's introduction of Kao Shih-ch'i's Chiang-ts'un hsiao-hsia-lu to Kwangtung can be regarded as some kind of con- tribution to the art collectors in his native place, then Pan Chêng- wei's recommendation of Sun Ch'êng-chê's Kêng-tzũ hsiao-hsia-chi should in the same way be said to be one of his contributions to the Kwangtung art collectors. It was probably because of Pan's high recommendation of the Kêng-tzű hsiao-hsia-chi that this book later attracted the attention of two other Kwangtung art collectors. Therefore, although in the Chia Ch'ing and Tao Kuang eras, the earlier Kwangtung art collectors Wu Yung-kuang and Yeh Mêng- lung were not fully aware of the significance of the Kêng-tzu hsiao- hsia-chi, it seems that in the Hsien Fêng era, however, the later Kwangtung art collectors Liang Ting-nan and Kung Kuang-tao began to show a certain degree of respect for Sun's catalogue. Evidence for this can be obtained in the compilation system adopted in the art catalogues compiled by Liang and Kung.
Now let us examine the editing system set down in Liang Ting- nan's T'êng-hua-t'ing shu-hua-pa and Kung Kuang-tao's Yüeh- hsüeh-lou shu-hua-lu. In the former there is a preface written in the 5th year of the Hsien Feng era (1855) by Liang T'ing-nan him- self, the last part of which reads,
This time when I came again to the province, I lived in seclu- sion .. I decided to keep this part after making a revision As to this edition, I would not dare to compare it with the two works compiled by Sun and Kao respectively. More- over in the matter of the editing system, my book differs from theirs on many points.
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