[
    {
        "id": 209725,
        "series_id": 26,
        "series_slug": "histsyn-rashkb-journal-engine",
        "series_title": "RASHKB Journal 皇家亞洲學會香港分會學刊",
        "series_use_hku_proxy": false,
        "document_key": "RAS-1982",
        "page_number": 382,
        "title": "RAS-1982",
        "content_text": "360\n\nBOOK REVIEWS\n\nwith someone, preferably Chinese, who knows the places well and can argue and interpret for him, it could well prove a dangerous as well as an incomplete vade-mecum.\n\nP. H. HASE\n\nThe Imperial Ming Tombs, Ann Paludan, Hong Kong University Press.\n\nIn many ways 'The Imperial Ming Tombs' by Ann Paludan is an excellent book, devoid of jargon, it opts for simplicity in its presentation to guide readers not only in detail to the history, architecture and sculptures of the monuments but also to the entire environment of this splendid mausolea complex where thirteen of the sixteen emperors of the Ming dynasty lie buried.\n\nEarlier studies on the Ming Tombs by other scholars concentrated on the first tomb, Ch'ang-ling. Ann Paludan attempts to consider the cemetery as a whole and reveals to us systematically one by one all the thirteen tombs. To complete the account, she includes Hsiao-ling in Nanking, tomb of the first Ming emperor Chu Yuan-chang, and Western Hills, tomb of Chu Chi-yu. Her account is different from that of earlier authors (Jan Jakob Maria De Groot, Georges Bouillard, Vandescal etc.) also because this was written after the restorations which began in the 1950s, and during the time when there was an expansion of the adjacent village and agricultural activities.\n\nThere is a remarkable difference in the way in which individual tombs are being preserved, some are gradually being incorporated into the life of the local village and even stones are being used for contemporary buildings. The book not only gives a description of the architectural and sculptural details of each tomb, but also a picture of the current state of the buildings and the village activities that grow around each mausoleum. The account of each tomb is further supplemented by descriptions of the drainage system and birds and flora observed in the precinct. A brief history of the life of the emperor buried there is also included to give the readers a better understanding of the choice of site of the mausoleum.\n\nFor\n\nA lot of attention is paid to detailed description in the book in order to establish the theory and concept of the tombs. example, the use of colour and materials, the origins of motifs,",
        "txt_file_path": "txt/dfo323lmgvd/RAS-1982.txt",
        "external_url": "https://digitalrepository.lib.hku.hk/catalog/mk61z420p",
        "rank": 0
    },
    {
        "id": 209726,
        "series_id": 26,
        "series_slug": "histsyn-rashkb-journal-engine",
        "series_title": "RASHKB Journal 皇家亞洲學會香港分會學刊",
        "series_use_hku_proxy": false,
        "document_key": "RAS-1982",
        "page_number": 383,
        "title": "RAS-1982",
        "content_text": "BOOK REVIEWS\n\n361\n\nsymbolism and certain architectural elements such as the stele to commemorate the dead are explained in detail with an appendix containing a further explanation of the symbolism and characteristics of the four intelligent creatures which are depicted in all the tomb architecture in the valley. The principles of Chinese architecture in general and tomb architecture in particular are established to enable the readers to understand the layout of the different mausolea; however, the comparison of domestic architecture, city planning and tomb architecture requires further exploration. Throughout the book, Ann Paludan emphasizes the tenacity of classical Chinese tradition apparent in the architecture of the Ming valley. All elements (basic forms, general pattern, layout, ground plan, style etc.) except for the drainage system can be dated back to an earlier time as in Han or T'ang.\n\nIt is certainly a difficult task to describe thirteen similar tombs without boring the readers, and so the author tries to tease out peculiarities observed in individual tombs, e.g. the ceramic frieze of the stele tower in Ch'ing-ling, the stone basins before the altar of Yu-ling and the sophisticated drainage systems in Yung-ling and Chao-ling. She also shows that later tombs often incorporate ideas from different earlier tombs which together with a few innovations fit into a traditional framework. The book should be commended for the clear graphics especially in the diagrammatic illustration of the tomb layouts and comparison of the thirteen tombs together. Photos could have been better if more of a sequence had been produced to tie in with the plans. At the end, Ann Paludan gives an account of the traditional administration of the Imperial cemetery and sacrificial rites performed at the tombs. This, together with her list of birds she observed during her many visits to the tombs, indicates the care and effort she has given to this beautiful piece of work.\n\nPATRICK LAU\n\nBritain in the Far East, Peter Lowe, Longmans, London and New York, 1981, n.p.\n\nProfessor Lowe's book is subtitled “A Survey from 1819 to the Present\" and that precisely defines the scope and treatment of the subject. As the author says, \"The aim of this work is",
        "txt_file_path": "txt/dfo323lmgvd/RAS-1982.txt",
        "external_url": "https://digitalrepository.lib.hku.hk/catalog/mk61z420p",
        "rank": 0
    },
    {
        "id": 212670,
        "series_id": 26,
        "series_slug": "histsyn-rashkb-journal-engine",
        "series_title": "RASHKB Journal 皇家亞洲學會香港分會學刊",
        "series_use_hku_proxy": false,
        "document_key": "RAS-1991",
        "page_number": 224,
        "title": "RAS-1991",
        "content_text": "BOOK REVIEWS \n\n205 \n\nAnn Paludan. Chinese Tomb Figurines, Hong Kong: Oxford University Press Images of Asia series, 1994, 66 pages. Illustrations. Chronology. Bibliography. Index. HK$95 \n\nIt is always a joy to behold a book by Ann Paludan, whether as a scholarly study or for general reading. Her smaller work, The Ming Tombs (Images of Asia 1991), possesses the same high quality of meticulous attention to scholarship as The Imperial Ming Tombs (Yale 1981), an academic publication. The book under consideration here, Chinese Tomb Figurines, is a smaller rendition of her The Chinese Spirit Road: The Classical Tradition of Stone Tomb Statuary (Yale 1991). \n\nThere is no need to have a trained eye or any knowledge of Chinese aesthetics to appreciate tomb figurines as they are shown by Paludan. She describes two types of figurines found in ancient tombs from the pre-Han era to the end of the Tang dynasty in chronological order - those made of clay and those made of stone. Despite their ‘ambivalent' attitude towards objects specifically made for tomb use, the Chinese 'dead were provided with replicas of worldly goods or talismans to help them' in their life in the nether world. Among the figurines reproduced in the book are mounted horsemen; acrobats and musicians; jesters and storytellers; houses for humans and a sty for pigs; and, above all, the ubiquitous 'fat lady' of the Tang dynasty. \n\nIt is wondrous indeed to wander into the countryside of ancient China through the figurines, not unlike perusing Egyptian relics at the Metropolitan Museum for the first time. Readers will encounter colour, pageantry, glorious ceremonies and mundane everyday happenings; and, above all, 'there are no representations of death, illness, mutilation, or violence.' There is, on the other hand, a great deal of humour for readers to savour. \n\nWEI PEH TI",
        "txt_file_path": "txt/dfo323lmgvd/RAS-1991.txt",
        "external_url": "https://digitalrepository.lib.hku.hk/catalog/k356gt84j",
        "rank": 0
    },
    {
        "id": 213176,
        "series_id": 26,
        "series_slug": "histsyn-rashkb-journal-engine",
        "series_title": "RASHKB Journal 皇家亞洲學會香港分會學刊",
        "series_use_hku_proxy": false,
        "document_key": "RAS-1993",
        "page_number": 244,
        "title": "RAS-1993",
        "content_text": "226\n\nPaludan, Ann, Chinese Tomb Figurines, Hong Kong and Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1994.\n\nThere is no need to have a trained eye or any knowledge of Chinese aesthetics to appreciate tomb figures as they are shown by Ann Paludan. She describes two types of figurines found in ancient Chinese tombs of the Pre-Han era to the end of the Tang dynasty in chronological order - those made of clay and those of stone. Among the figures reproduced in the book are mounted horsemen; acrobats and musicians; jesters and storytellers; houses for humans and a sty for pigs; and, above all, the ubiquitous 'fat lady' of the Tang dynasty. As they peruse these pages, readers will encounter colour, pageantry, glorious ceremonies, and mundane everyday happenings. They will not find any sadness associated with death, but a great deal of humour suited to eternity.\n\nPostiglione, Gerard A. and Julian Y.M. Leung, eds, Education and Society in Hong Kong: Toward One Country and Two Systems, Hong Kong: Hong Kong University Press, 1992 (1994 reprint).\n\nOne of a series entitled Hong Kong Becoming China: the Transition to 1997, this volume, comprising 13 essays, focuses on education and society in Hong Kong. The key word here is education, not society. The essays have been divided into five categories, as a glance at the table of contents will reveal. Non-specialist readers will find certain subjects more appealing than others. For instance, the decolonization of Hong Kong education should be more welcome reading than the allocation of secondary school places in the territory or listings of entire syllabi of courses taught in Hong Kong from 1972 to 1989.\n\nWen, Betty, and Elizabeth Lee, Cultural Shock: Hong Kong, Singapore: Times Publications, 1995.\n\nThe Hong Kong title of the Cultural Shock series, this information-packed and wittily written volume provides new residents and interested visitors to Hong Kong with considerably more than a cultural guide. The text includes an account of the territory's history, its people, traditions, customs, and life-styles. The authors' masterly reading of the Hong Kong characteristics and hilarious comments on work and leisure are further enhanced by Trigg's cartoons. In addition, there is a helpful section comprising a list of public holidays in Hong Kong, a chronology, a cultural quiz, and suggested reading.",
        "txt_file_path": "txt/dfo323lmgvd/RAS-1993.txt",
        "external_url": "https://digitalrepository.lib.hku.hk/catalog/66833t302",
        "rank": 0
    }
]