188
DAVID H. S. CHAU
paper was used to print books of importance. The best quality paper, and the most expensive, was Hsuen Paper (*) which is made of a mixture of purified rice stalks and the bark of wingceltis (**). Hsuen Paper was also extensively used by Chinese artists for picture painting. Some types of Hsuen Paper treated or sized by alum mixture (#) were called Ripe Hsuen (*) and those untreated were called Raw Hsuen (*). The paper used for print making was usually treated with a light solution of alum and glue, a colour fixer to prevent the moisture of the pigment spreading.
Woodblock printed books and their preservation
As early as the third century AD, Chinese already knew how to preserve paper from being damaged by worms. Paper was medicated by using a solution obtained from the bark of a cork tree (‡). Paper-mounting techniques were also developed. All books of the early period were written or printed on many pieces of paper and fastened together by mounting in a one long scroll (*). Most of the Tun-huang Collection are of scroll type manuscripts, written or printed on yellowish medicated paper. Handling such rolls cannot but be awkward for the reader, who has to be constantly unrolling and rolling up again as he goes along, and any reference to a required passage may involve a serious loss of time. A longer scroll can be one hundred feet long. Not until the tenth century was the book in the form of a booklet developed. The paper was folded into leaves of a reasonable size thus forming a volume that could be quickly opened at any point and closed after consultation.
Later on, other paper medication materials like the juice from spice plants like chili, pepper or red pepper, and from minerals like orpiment or red orpiment were also used. During the Ming and Ch'ing Dynasties, a new method for book protection was found by the book printers of Fatshan. They inserted two pages of red lead (‡) treated papers to the inner front and inner rear under the cover of each volume. These red coloured pages contain poison. They were called "Ten Thousand Year Red" (†) and were used extensively in this period by the printers of Southern China.
Conclusion
Woodblock printing has been of vast importance to the Chinese cultural inheritance. It has acted as the greatest agent for preservation.
188
DAVID H. S. CHAU
paper was used to print books of importance. The best quality paper, and the most expensive, was Hsuen Paper (&) which is made of a mixture of purified rice stalks and the bark of wingceltis (**). Hsuen Paper was also extensively used by Chinese artists for picture painting. Some types of Hsuen Paper treated or sized by alum mixture (#) were called Ripe Hsuen (*) and those untreated were called Raw Hsuen (). The paper used for print making was usually treated with a light solution of alum and glue, a colour fixer to prevent the moisture of the pigment spreading.
Woodblock printed books and their preservation
As early as the third century AD, Chinese already knew how to preserve paper from being damaged by worms. Paper were medica- ted by using a solution obtained from the bark of a cork tree ( # #). Paper-mounting techniques were also developed. All books of the early period were written or printed on many pieces of paper and fastened together by mounting in a one long scroll (*). Most of the Tun-huang Collection are of scroll type manuscripts, written or printed on yellowish medicated paper. Handling such rolls cannot but be awkward for the reader, who has to be constantly unrolling and rolling up again as he goes along, and any reference to a required passage may involve a serious loss of time. A longer scroll can be one hundred feet long. Not until the tenth century was the book in the form of a booklet developed. The paper was folded into leaves of a reasonable size thus forming a volume that could be quickly opened at any point and closed after consultation.
Later on, other paper medication materials like the juice from spice plants like chili, pepper or red pepper, and from minerals like orpiment or red orpiment were also used. During the Ming and Ch'ing Dynasties, a new method for book protection was found by the book printers of Fatshan. They inserted two pages of red lead (AL) treated papers to the inner front and inner rear under the cover of each volume. These red coloured pages contain poison. They were called "Ten Thousand Year Red” (†4) and were used extensively in this period by the printers of Southern China.
Conclusion
Woodblock printing has been of vast importance to the Chinese cultural inheritance. It has acted as the greatest agent for preser-
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