List of National Treasures of Japan (writings: Chinese books)
Name Remarks Date Format Present location
Giso Rokujō , Song edition ( 宋刊義楚六帖 , sōhan giso rokujō ) Encyclopedic account of Buddhism 1127 Southern Song , 1127 12 books bound by fukuro-toji Kyoto Kyoto Tofukuji Tōfuku-ji , Kyoto
Compilation of Ouyang Xiu , Song printed edition ( 宋刊本欧陽文忠公集 , sōkanpon ōyō bunchūkōshū ) Kanazawa Bunko edition ( 金沢文庫本 , kanazawa bunkobon ) Formerly stored at the Kanazawa Bunko library 1196 Southern Song , 1196 39 books bound by fukuro-toji , 28 cm × 18.5 cm ( 11.0 in × 7.3 in ) Nara Tenri Tenri Central Library Tenri Central Library , Tenri , Nara
Records of the Grand Historian collected commentaries , Song printed edition ( 宋刊本史記集解 , sōkanpon shiki shikkai ) - 1127 Southern Song Eleven books bound by fukuro-toji Osaka Osaka Takeda Science Foundation Takeda Science Foundation ( 武田科学振興財団 , Takeda Kagaku Shinkōzaidan ) , Osaka
Wen Xuan , Song printed edition ( 宋刊本文選 , sōkanbon monzen ) Kanazawa Bunko edition ( 金沢文庫本 , kanazawa bunkobon ) With contributions by Hōjō Ujimasa and Kyūka Zuiyo ( 九華瑞璵 ) from 1560 ; formerly stored at the Kanazawa Bunko library ; from June 1560 in possession of Ashikaga Gakko 1127 Southern Song 21 books bound by fukuro-toji , 29.1 cm × 19.1 cm ( 11.5 in × 7.5 in ) Tochigi Ashikaga Ashikaga Gakko Remain Library Ashikaga Gakko Remain Library ( 足利学校遺蹟図書館 , Ashikaga Gakkō iseki toshōkan ) , Ashikaga , Tochigi
Book of Han , Song edition ( 宋版漢書 , sōhan kanjo ) , Keigen printed edition ( 慶元刊本 , keigen kanpon ) Handed down in the Kōjōkan ( 興譲館 ) , an Edo period clan school of the Yonezawa Domain 1195 Southern Song , Keigen era ( 1195-1200 ) 61 books bound by fukuro-toji Chiba Sakura National Museum of Japanese History National Museum of Japanese History , Sakura , Chiba
Book of the Later Han , Song edition ( 宋版後漢書 , sōhan gokanjo ) , Keigen printed edition ( 慶元刊本 , keigen kanpon ) Chinese historical work , handed down in the Kōjōkan ( 興譲館 ) , an Edo period clan school of the Yonezawa Domain 1127 Southern Song 60 books bound by fukuro-toji Chiba Sakura National Museum of Japanese History National Museum of Japanese History , Sakura , Chiba
Records of the Grand Historian , Song edition ( 宋版史記 , sōhanshiki ) Huang Shanfu printed edition ( 黄善夫刊本 ) Oldest Song edition of this work ; formerly in possession of the Kōjōkan ( 興譲館 ) , an Edo period clan school of the Yonezawa Domain 1127 Southern Song 90 books bound by fukuro-toji Chiba Sakura National Museum of Japanese History National Museum of Japanese History , Sakura , Chiba
Detailed Commentary to the Changes of Zhou ( Zhou Yi ) , Song edition ( 宋版周易注疏 , Sōban Shūeki Chūso ) Postscript near the end of each volume indicating the year ( 1234-1236 ) 1234 Southern Song , 1234-1236 13 books bound by fukuro-toji , ink on paper , 27.0 cm × 19.1 cm ( 10.6 in × 7.5 in ) Tochigi Ashikaga Ashikaga Gakko Remain Library Ashikaga Gakko Remain Library ( 足利学校遺蹟図書館 , Ashikaga Gakkō iseki toshōkan ) , Ashikaga , Tochigi
Commentary on the Book of History , Song edition ( 宋版尚書正義 , sōban shōshoseigi ) Each page has 8 lines with 16-21 characters per line with annotation lines consisting of two rows instead of one 1127 Southern Song 8 books bound by fukuro-toji , ink on paper , 28.3 cm × 18.2 cm ( 11.1 in × 7.2 in ) Tochigi Ashikaga Ashikaga Gakko Remain Library Ashikaga Gakko Remain Library ( 足利学校遺蹟図書館 , Ashikaga Gakkō iseki toshōkan ) , Ashikaga , Tochigi
Commentary on the Book of Rites , Song edition ( 宋版礼記正義 , sōban raikiseigi ) With red seals and text in India ink indicating the hereditary in the Ashikaga Gakko Library 1127 Southern Song 2 books bound by fukuro-toji , ink on paper , 26 cm × 18.7 cm ( 10.2 in × 7.4 in ) Tochigi Ashikaga Ashikaga Gakko Remain Library Ashikaga Gakko Remain Library ( 足利学校遺蹟図書館 , Ashikaga Gakkō iseki toshōkan ) , Ashikaga , Tochigi
Imperial Readings of the Taiping Era , Song edition ( 宋版太平御覧 , sōban taiheigyoran ) Massive encyclopedia , part of the Four Great Books of Song 1199 Southern Song , 1199 103 books bound by fukuro-toji , ink on paper Kyoto Kyoto Tofukuji Tōfuku-ji , Kyoto
Commentary on the Book of Songs , Song edition ( 宋版毛詩正義 , sōban mōshiseigi ) , Kanazawa Bunko edition ( 金沢文庫本 , kanazawa bunkobon ) Formerly stored at the Kanazawa Bunko library 1139 Southern Song , 1139 17 books bound by fukuro-toji , ink on paper Osaka Osaka Takeda Science Foundation Takeda Science Foundation ( 武田科学振興財団 , Takeda Kagaku Shinkōzaidan ) , Osaka
Anthology of Liu Mengde , Song edition ( 宋版劉夢得文集 , sōhan ryūbōtoku bunshū ) Anthology by Liu Yuxi 1127 Southern Song 12 bound books by fukuro-toji , ink on paper Nara Tenri Tenri Central Library Tenri Central Library , Tenri , Nara
Treasures -- Song printed editions
Printing had been known in Japan from at least the 8th century , when a large number of dharani known as Hyakumantō Darani [ nb 13 ] were printed from 764 to 770 and placed in miniature wooden pagodas . These count among the oldest extant printed texts in East Asia and were likely made by woodblock printing . [ 71 ] [ 72 ] The Hyakumantō Darani were ritual Buddhist printings , neither meant for distribution nor for reading . [ 71 ] [ 72 ] [ 73 ] This practice of devotional printing continued into the Heian period . The first practical printing in Japan can be dated to the 11th century and is associated with sutra commentaries and doctrinal works for which handcopying did not entail religious merit . [ 73 ] [ 74 ] [ 75 ] Despite the increasing popularity of printing , many texts , particularly Japanese literature , continued to be copied by hand on manuscript scrolls . Commercial printing did not become common until the early 17th century . [ 74 ] [ 76 ] Printing in China initially had a similar development , starting with the printing of religious scriptures , prayers and popularly useful texts such as almanacs or calendars which were produced for local use by temples . By the Five Dynasties , the government realized the opportunities of printing political and ideological texts such as the Classics . [ 77 ] The ensuing Song Dynasty saw great advancements in art , religion and philosophy with scholarly activity greatly facilitated by printed books . [ 78 ] [ 79 ] Consequently , the Chinese publishing industry took off during the Song Dynasty , several hundred years before the same happened in Japan . [ 77 ] Enhanced by the Song interest of foreign trade and the maritime activity of the Taira , the book exchange between China and Japan saw a second peak after the Sui and Tang Dynasties starting in 1192 . [ 8 ] [ 76 ] [ 78 ] [ 80 ] Japanese visitors to Song China returned with a large number of printed books , on a variety of subjects such as history , philosophy , Buddhism , Confucianism , literature , medicine and geography , causing a revival of pure scholarship , which had been sidelined during the earlier obsession with poetry in the Heian period courtier society . [ 78 ] [ 79 ] [ 80 ] [ 81 ] The supply of imported printed editions of Chinese texts was insufficient to meet the demand and by the time of the Taira supremacy collections of Chinese books had become status symbols among the upper class of Japan . [ 79 ] [ 82 ] Books were collected and formed the nuclei of many new libraries , in particular those associated with Zen temples of Kyoto and Kamakura or those founded by samurai families of the Kantō region . [ 55 ] [ 79 ] These libraries became centers of learning and to a great extent stimulated the varied and energetic scholarly activities of the coming medieval age . [ 79 ] [ 83 ] The most important of these new libraries in the Kamakura period was the Kanazawa Bunko , established in 1275 by Hōjō Sanetoki . [ 84 ] [ 85 ] [ 86 ] Eclectic in scope , it had a huge collection of books embracing the literary culture of all of East Asia , including a great number of Song editions of Chinese works . [ 83 ] [ 85 ] [ 87 ] The collection was dispersed at the end of the 16th century and partially transferred to Edo by Tokugawa Ieyasu . [ 85 ] [ 87 ] Librarians of Kanazawa Bunko used an ownership seal , making it possible to trace existing copies back to that library . [ 87 ] During the Muromachi period Uesugi Norizane revived in 1432 the Ashikaga Gakko library that came to house a bulk of mainly Confucian texts and exegetical works . [ 83 ] [ 88 ] [ 89 ] [ 90 ] Thirteen sets of Song printed books have been designated as National Treasures . Many of them have been handed down in feudal era Japanese clans and were stored at libraries such as Kanazawa Bunko , Ashikaga Gakko or at monasteries such as the one of Tōfuku-ji . They cover mainly Chinese Classics such as books and commentaries on Records of the Grand Historian , the Book of Han , the Book of Later Han , Classic of History , Book of Rites , Book of Songs or the Book of Changes . Two are encyclopedias . [ 4 ]
The term National Treasure has been used in Japan to denote cultural properties since 1897,
although the definition and the criteria have changed since the introduction of the term. The written materials in the list adhere to the current definition, and have been designated National Treasures according to the Law for the Protection of Cultural Properties that came into effect on June 9, 1951. The items are selected by the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology based on their especially high historical or artistic value. The list presents 56 entries from the 7th century Tang Dynasty to the Kamakura period with more than half originating in China. The total number of items is higher, however, since groups of related objects have been joined as single entries. The list contains works that have been originally compiled in China by Chinese authors. A large proportion of these works are Chinese classics. Written language was introduced to Japan around 400 AD in the form of Chinese books written in Classical Chinese. Japanese interest in Chinese writings and culture gradually increased towards the end of the 6th century when Japanese rulers sent missions to the mainland for cultural studies, and to bring back books. During circa 300 years in the Sui and Tang Dynasties, a large number of Chinese books were brought to Japan. By the 8th century, Chinese works were customarily copied at Japanese libraries to satisfy the demand for education of the male aristocracy. Until the early 17th century, copying in Japan was largely by hand.