Tags: Qing dynasty | rare books

This book (十竹齋書畫譜) was printed in the Kangxi reign (1662-1722) of the Qing Dynasty. It is a reprint by the Mustard Seed Garden (芥子園) of the colored print in the Ming Dynasty’s Tianqi to Chongzhen period (1621-1644). It was printed using the Dou version (餖版), i.e., many small wood blocks were painted with different colors and then assembled into one unit for a picture. The resulting prints show distinct shades of colors and closely resemble the original paintings. This book is unparalleled in the arts of painting, engraving, and printing.

National Central Library Chinese Rare Books Collection Digitization Project