Bamboo slips from the Yinqueshan Han Tombs (file)

 

 

The 20th Annual Symposium on Chinese Paleography, which also celebrates the 120th anniversary of Professor Rong Geng’s birth, was held in Guangdong Province on Oct. 10 to 12.

 

Zeng Xiantong, a researcher at his 80s, from the Research Institute of Chinese Paleography of Sun Yat-sen University, said that when the Chinese Paleography Research Association for was established in 1978, there was a temporary shortage of researchers in the field. However, since 1970s, research teams for document excavation and Chinese paleography have grown significantly, leading to the discovery of numerous relics and texts, including some never-before-seen Jianbo literature written on bamboo and silk.

 

Wu Zhenwu, president of Chinese Paleography Research Association, said the amount of researchers working on Chinese paleography in China is no longer insufficient and the situation is now “better than ever” thanks to the participation of many new excellent young scholars. At present, the Institute of History and the Institute of archaeology at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, Wuhan University, Jilin University, Fudan University, Peking University, Capital Normal University, Sun Yat-sen University and Sichuan University and other institutes have become the key units for research on Chinese paleography.

 

Meanwhile, international academia is paying more attention to the study of Chinese paleography, and research teams are also expanding abroad. For example, several years ago, Edward Shaughnessy, an expert on early Chinese Studies set up the Creel Center for Chinese Paleography at the University of Chicago, said Liu Zhao, director of the Center for Research on Chinese Evacuated Classics and Paleography at Fudan University.

 

Liu added that research on unearthed texts and Chinese paleography has always been the main focus in overseas Sinology studies, and more emphasis will be put on this area given that the study of Chinese paleography is increasingly a hot topic in China.

 

Wu said that a wealth of newly unearthed texts is contributing greatly to the development of Chinese paleography, including the Guodian Chu Slips, Chu Slips collected by the Shanghai Museum, the Tsinghua Bamboo Slips, Qin and Chu Bamboo Slips collected by Peking University, and the Qin Bamboo Slips collected by Yuelu Academy. Every year, new materials emerge, which will require large numbers of researchers to study.

 

“We are blessed to live in the contemporary era to study materials that our predecessors have not seen, and also because of newly unearthed texts, young scholars are able to make new breakthroughs,” Wu said.

 

Liu said several factors have also helped to advance the study of Chinese paleography in recent decades, such as increasing investments in education and emphasis on traditional humanities studies, bringing broader and more sustained resources to the study. Moreover, the application of computer science speeds up data collection as well as publishing.

 

“Research on Chinese paleography in China in recent decades has three characteristics: One is that more symposiums, topics, books and related papers are springing up. Second, more scholars are engaging in the study of ancient Chinese, especially young scholars. Third, more disciplines use ancient materials in their studies,” Liu added.

 

As for the future direction of research, Zeng said that some newly unearthed materials have not ever been read by other researchers, and some contain errors due to multiple copies and changes over years. Therefore, the study of newly unearthed documents can correct previous errors and the focus should be on materials that have never seen before.

 

Liu said that research on unearthed documents and Chinese paleography has entered a golden era. It is necessary to devote more resources to analyzing new materials as well as getting them published, Liu proposed. Meanwhile, more efforts should be used for the compilation of reference books, he said.

 

In addition, Liu said, “We need to strengthen the integration of related disciplines, which provides ancient texts for other disciplines while making full use of relevant disciplines to achieve interdisciplinary, multi-angle and diverse study on Chinese paleography.

 

The Chinese version appeared in Chinese Social Sciences Today, No. 657, Oct.17, 2014      

The Chinese link is: http://sscp.cssn.cn/xkpd/xszx/gn/201410/t20141017_1366468.html

 

 

 

 

Translated by Yang Xue