*This article is the content of the second issue of "Half Moon Talk" in 2023
Known as the "masterpiece of traditional Chinese culture", only three and a half copies of the Siku Quanshu currently exist. In the 60s of the 20th century, according to the arrangement of relevant state departments, the "Siku Quanshu" of Wen Shuge was moved from Liaoning Province to Gansu Province for preservation, and since then this classic has been settled in Lanzhou City, Gansu Province. Why can the once upheaval treasure of Wenshu Pavilion be able to rest and recuperate after settling in the northwest? What's next, how can it be more valuable? In this regard, the reporter of Banyuetan conducted an interview.
Say goodbye to "upheaval"
Siku Quanshu is a large-scale series of books compiled during the Qianlong period of the Qing Dynasty, and is the largest collection and collection of documents that have existed since the beginning of written records in China, and can be called priceless. After the book was written, Qianlong ordered seven hand-copied copies to be hidden in Gyeonggi, the Yangtze River Delta, and Shenyang, Liaoning, the birthplace of the Qing Dynasty, in order to "continue to study for the past saints and open peace for all generations."
But I didn't expect that in just over 200 years, more than half of the seven "Four Library Complete Books" were destroyed, and their fate had ups and downs. According to statistics, the three and a half "Siku Quanshu" hidden in the Yangtze River Delta and the Old Summer Palace in Beijing were destroyed by the Taiping Rebellion and the Second Opium War, and the surviving three and a half "Siku Quanshu" were displaced from most of China. Among them, the most tortuous fate is the "Siku Quanshu" originally stored in the Shenyang Imperial Palace.
The library building of the "Four Libraries of Complete Books" in the Jiuzhoutai Scenic Area of Lanzhou City
Wenshuge's Siku Quanshu was completed in 1782 and is the second completed book in the series. Since the fall of the Qing Dynasty, this classic has been displaced nearly 10 times and has been in danger several times.
In 1900, the eight-nation coalition invaded China, and Tsarist Russia took the opportunity to occupy the three eastern provinces, and there was a missing volume between the "Four Libraries of the Library" of Wen Shuge; During the Anti-Japanese War, it was once occupied by the Japanese, but it was lost and recovered after the victory of the Anti-Japanese War; During the period of resisting US aggression and aiding Korea, it was transferred to Heilongjiang for preservation, but unexpectedly encountered a major flood and was forced to move again, but fortunately it was able to survive without danger.
In the 60s of the 20th century, affected by the international situation, in order to protect the safety of cultural relics, the relevant state departments decided to transfer the "Siku Quanshu" originally stored in Shenyang, Liaoning Province to Lanzhou, Gansu for preservation. Chen Jun, director of the "Siku Quanshu" library of the Gansu Provincial Library, said that it was because of this relocation that this 200-year-old classic has survived its most stable "golden half-century" since modern times.
"According to the handover materials between the Liaoning Provincial Library and the Gansu Provincial Library in 1966, the "Four Libraries of the Complete Book" of Wenshuge has a total of 6141 letters, 3474 types, and 36315 volumes." Xiao Xuezhi, director of the Gansu Provincial Library, said that for more than half a century, the "Four Libraries of the Complete Book" has not been damaged in any form in Gansu.
In 2017, the Gansu Provincial Library organized special personnel to check the whole book page by page, and checked and counted letter by letter and book by book according to the card catalog handed over by the former Liaoning Provincial Library, and the results showed that it was consistent with the original archival records, and the original macular area in the book was not expanded and the chromaticity was not deepened. The former Ministry of Culture sent a special expert group to Lanzhou for investigation and research, and the experts unanimously agreed that Gansu's preservation of the Siku Quanshu over the years has been fruitful.
The "Natural Library" contains treasures
The once upside down treasure can rest and recuperate after settling in the northwest, thanks to many reasons.
Chen Weizhong, director of the Gansu Provincial Department of Culture and Tourism, said that the reason why this legendary classic can bid farewell to "upheaval and displacement" is due to the peaceful development environment and the party's policy support since the founding of New China. The attention of governments at all levels, the introduction of local regulations, the management of professional teams, and the prosperity of research forces have enabled this excellent Chinese cultural heritage to be passed on.
He Mouzhong, head of the ancient books restoration section of the Gansu Provincial Ancient Books Protection Center, said that in Gansu, although the Dunhuang Mogao Grottoes have survived for thousands of years, they have not lost their luster, and the Qin and Han Jianmu have been sleeping underground for more than 2,000 years. This fully shows that Gansu, which is deep inland and has a dry climate, has been a "natural library" suitable for the storage of ancient books since ancient times. Up to now, there are about 1.4 million ancient books in Gansu Province, and a total of 306 have been selected into the National List of Precious Ancient Books.
The camphor wood book box of the "Siku Quanshu" of the Wen Shu Ge is preserved
In the "Siku Quanshu" library of Wenshu Pavilion located in the Jiuzhoutai Scenic Area of Lanzhou City, the ancient buildings of the three entrances and two courtyards stand on the Beishan Terrace of Lanzhou, overlooking the Lanzhou City and the Yellow River below the mountain. "The Wenshu Pavilion's "Four Libraries" library covers an area of more than 50 acres, and uses an international standard constant temperature and constant wetland library, which is fully qualified for the protection of ancient books." Chen Jun said: The coldest average temperature in January was 12 degrees Celsius, and the average humidity remained at about 50 percent throughout the year, which has a unique advantage in preserving precious paper cultural relics.
Gansu Province has limited revenue, but since the entry of Wenshuge's Siku Quanshu, special investment for the protection of its special collections has never stopped. Chen Jun said: Wen Shuge's "Siku Quanshu" has changed three times in Gansu. The local government has invested hundreds of millions of yuan to upgrade the collection conditions, specially added institutions and compiled to form a long-term protection mechanism, and explored a set of ancient book protection solutions suitable for local conditions according to local conditions, that is, using the structure of the collection building and natural ventilation conditions to control temperature and humidity, and prevent insects, mildew, bacteria and dust by making camphor bookcases and putting mothballs.
The staff counted the "Four Libraries of the Complete Book" of Wen Shu Ge
Let the most mysterious "Siku Quanshu" come to life
Over the past 200 years since its completion, Siku Quanshu has built a huge research space and platform for future generations of scholars, provided a wealth of research topics, and has been very active in academic research and produced endless research results.
The digitization and photocopying project of the Four Libraries of the Book of Wenshuge is in progress
In Gansu, academic research on the Siku Quanshu is also continuing. Lanzhou University, Northwest Normal University and other colleges of history and culture in Gansu Province have opened special courses on the study of Siku Quanshu, and many master's and doctoral students have also explored different research directions from Siku Quanshu as their graduation thesis topics.
In order to further promote the research of Siku Quanshu, in 2005, initiated by Gansu Provincial Library and joined forces with Lanzhou University, Northwest Normal University, Gansu Academy of Social Sciences and other research groups, the Gansu Siku Quanshu Research Association was established. This provides a new and important platform for the study of the Siku Quanshu in Gansu Province.
However, as the most mysterious of the three and a half surviving books of the Siku Quanshu, for many years, the Siku Quanshu of Wen Shuge has neither been photocopied nor digitized.
Wei Hongyuan, professor of the Institute of Ancient Chinese Literature and Classical Philology at the School of Literature of Lanzhou University, and other scholars reported that the role of the Siku Quanshu is largely only reflected in its cultural relics value, and its documentary research value has not been fully displayed. In order to bring the treasures of literature "shelved to life", speeding up the digitization of ancient books and the process of photocopying and publishing is an important way.
Xiao Xuezhi revealed that the digitization and photocopying project of Wenshuge's Siku Quanshu has been officially launched in 2021, and the preliminary results are expected to be announced to the public around 2024.
Half Moon Talk Reporter: Lang Bingbing He Qing / Editor: Xu Ning
Editor: Guo Yanhui / Proofreader: Qin Daixin