On the morning of June 7, 2024 (local time), Zhejiang University held a ceremony to present the “A Comprehensive Collection of Ancient Chinese Paintings” to the University of Oxford at the Bahari Seminar Room in Oxford. Attendees included Mamtimyn Sunuodula, Head of the Bodleian Libraries’ East Asia Section at the University of Oxford; Tian Yuan Tan, Shaw Professor of Chinese at the University of Oxford; Chu Chaofu, President of Zhejiang University Press; Huang Chen, Deputy Director of the CADAL Project Management Center; Jin Jiali, Deputy Secretary-General of CADAL; Academician Yang Yuliang, Director of the Ancient Book Preservation Institute at Fudan University; Yang Guanghui, Deputy Director of Fudan University Library; Sui Jun, Director of the Ancient Books Department at Fudan University Library; Zhou Xinping, Director of the East Asian Library at the University of California, Berkeley; and Sim Chuin Peng, Deputy Director of the National University of Singapore Library and Head of the Collection Management and Preservation Cluster, along with other faculty and students.
In his speech, President Chu Chaofu remarked that art and culture have always served as important bridges for communication between different civilizations, providing rich evidence and a broader perspective for understanding the evolution of human civilization. He expressed his hope to engage in discussions with the attending guests on how to further utilize the “A Comprehensive Collection of Ancient Chinese Paintings” to foster a deeper, broader, and more comprehensive understanding of Chinese art and culture through closer exchanges and cooperation.
Director Mamtimyn Sunuodula expressed heartfelt gratitude to Zhejiang University for the book donation and apologized on behalf of the University of Oxford’s Chinese art scholars and representatives from publishing institutions who were unable to attend due to other commitments. He expressed great anticipation for future visits from the Zhejiang University team to further discussions on collaboration and exchange. He also noted that the image of Qiu Ying’s Riverside Scene at Qingming Festival displayed in the “Collection” was printed with exceptional clarity, making it a valuable reference for studying the painting and calligraphy market in Suzhou during the Ming Dynasty and Suzhou cultural scenes. He believed that adding the “Collection” to Oxford’s library would enrich the university’s art book resources, and they would promote the project within Oxford’s Chinese community.
As the academic representative for the University of Oxford at the event, Professor Tian Yuan Tan thanked Zhejiang University for donating this valuable set of books to Oxford. He emphasized the “Collection’s” significance for research in fields such as history, transnational studies, and translation studies and expressed confidence that Oxford’s faculty and students would make full use of the resources for learning and research.
Following the speeches, President Chu Chaofu formally presented the books to Director Mamtimyn Sunuodula on behalf of Zhejiang University.
Compiled and published by Zhejiang University and Zhejiang Provincial Administration of Cultural Heritage, the “A Comprehensive Collection of Ancient Chinese Paintings” includes 12,405 pieces (or sets) of ancient Chinese paintings on various materials such as paper, silk (including brocade and damask), and hemp, sourced from 263 cultural and museum institutions worldwide. Of these, 9,155 pieces (or sets) are from domestic collections, while 3,250 are from international collections, covering most of the surviving “national treasure” level masterpieces. The publication consists of A Comprehensive Collection of from Pre-Qin Period to Tang Dynasty Paintings, A Comprehensive Collection of Song Dynasty Paintings, A Comprehensive Collection of Yuan Dynasty Paintings, A Comprehensive Collection of Ming Dynasty Paintings, and A Comprehensive Collection of Qing Dynasty Paintings, totaling 62 volumes in 232 books. This is the most comprehensive collection of high-quality works in similar publications, and it is the largest in scale in terms of Chinese painting image archives published to date.
On the afternoon of June 5, the 40th anniversary celebration of Zhejiang University Press and the overseas promotion event for the “A Comprehensive Collection of Ancient Chinese Paintings” was held at St. Catharine’s College, University of Cambridge. Attendees included Henning Sirringhaus, Fellow of the Royal Society and Professor at the Cavendish Laboratory, University of Cambridge; Frances Wood, renowned Sinologist, historian, former Head of the Chinese Section at the British Library, and recipient of the Special Book Award of China; Zhang Hongxing, Senior Curator and Senior Researcher of Chinese Collections at the Victoria and Albert Museum (V&A); Mei Jianjun, Director of the Needham Research Institute, University of Cambridge; Yu Rong, artist and Director of the Jiangnan Culture International Communication Research Center at Soochow University; Chu Chaofu, President and Editor-in-Chief of Zhejiang University Press; and Zhao Feng, Dean of the School of Art and Archaeology at Zhejiang University.
After watching the promotional video of the “Collection” in both Chinese and English, President Chu Chaofu introduced the development of Zhejiang University and highlighted the achievements of Zhejiang University Press over the past 40 years in areas such as international collaboration, high-end art publications, cultural and artistic books, humanities and social sciences publications, specialty book brands, cross-cultural exchange publications, science and technology publishing, textbook production, academic journals, and international publishing service platforms. He expressed that Zhejiang University Press is eager to use the “Collection” as a bridge to collaborate with all friends who care about and appreciate Chinese culture, to explore and share the beautiful knowledge and experiences of human civilization.
Following this, the attendees exchanged ideas on the publication standards, academic value, overseas promotion of the “Collection,” as well as issues related to the import and export of Chinese books. Professor Henning Sirringhaus praised the exquisite printing quality of the “Collection,” noting that the high-definition, life-size images bring the ancient paintings to life. Mr. Zhang Hongxing emphasized that this collection holds great significance for both the cultural heritage sector and scholars of ancient Chinese painting. He pointed out that compared to similar painting catalogs such as The Comprehensive Illustrated Catalog of Chinese Paintings compiled by Suzuki Kei’s team in Japan and those published by the Taipei Palace Museum, the “Collection” is remarkable for balancing comprehensiveness and image quality, making it a groundbreaking and epoch-making compilation of Chinese paintings. Additionally, due to its vast content, the “Collection” also serves as a foundational resource for non-artistic and interdisciplinary studies. Director Mei Jianjun added that some works in the “Collection” can reflect the relationship between ancient Chinese painting and the history of Chinese science and technology, opening up numerous potential research topics. Ms. Frances Wood reminisced about her early experiences studying Chinese art, noting the difficulties scholars faced when researching painting images in the past. She expressed that the “Collection,” which incorporates advanced digital technology and offers a large number of high-definition images, greatly facilitates academic research and serves as an invaluable learning tool. Lastly, the attendees offered suggestions regarding the export and promotion of Chinese books, with Ms. Yu Rong sharing her thoughts on the overseas promotion of Chinese art books and their role in children’s education.
Zhejiang University Press aims to become a world-class university press and contributes to the construction of world-class disciplines and universities through international publishing efforts. In recent years, Zhejiang University Press has been a national leader in international cooperation, maintaining partnerships with over 200 publishing companies in more than 30 countries and regions. Its signature book series, “Qizhen Books,” has seen works such as Rumors in the Han Dynasty and Early Modern Chinese Economy: The Yangtze Delta in the 1820s introduced and published in English by Cambridge University Press. The 40th anniversary celebration of Zhejiang University Press and the overseas promotion event for the “A Comprehensive Collection of Ancient Chinese Paintings” have further advanced the press’s international efforts and the global dissemination of the “Collection” project.