Search Results: Authors starting with Y from Jonathan A. Hill, Bookseller, Inc.

12 folding leaves. 8vo, orig. patterned wrappers, orig. block-printed title label on upper cover, new stitching. Tokyo: Shosanodo shoten, 1909. First edition of the catalogue of a part of the library of the famous Shoheizaka Gakumonjo school, which was located in what is today Ueno Park. The school had its origins as a private Confucian temple, constructed by Razan Hayashi (1583-1657), but was turned into a state-run school under the direct control of the bakufu in 1797, following the Kansei Edict. The school, an official academy of the Tokugawa shogunate, produced many outstanding leaders. The catalogue describes 64 titles printed in 667 volumes, chiefly devoted to Chinese studies, printed at the academy before its closure in 1871, following the Meiji Restoration. Title, number of volumes, author, and year are given. Tetsunosuke Tomita (1835-1916), the prominent banker and governor of Tokyo, found the woodblocks of these 64 publications and issued the present book to record their existence. Fine… Read More

Many fine brush & color and black & white paintings in the text. Two illus. with movable flaps (one is a volvelle). Finely written in a superb calligraphic hand on mica-coated (kirabiki) textured paper. 31; 34; 36; 35; 35; 30; 45; 33 leaves (not including blanks). Eight vols. 8vo (252 x 180 mm.), orig. dark blue wrappers bound in tetsuyoso style, each cover finely illustrated by hand in gold with depictions of landscapes with plants. [Japan]: Preface dated 1656; this manuscript was written sometime afterwards, probably in the 17th century. Yamaga (1622-85), military strategist and Confucian philosopher, set forth the first systematic exposition of the missions and obligations of the samurai (warrior) class. These included martial spirit, weaponry skills, loyalty to one's lord, a sense of personal honor, devotion to duty, and a willingness to sacrifice one's own life. His teachings became the central core of what later became known as Bushido (Code of Warriors), which guided Japan's military class… Read More

Scroll (420 x 12,000 mm.), with elaborate silk brocade endpaper at beginning. [Japan]: 1880-86. This beautifully rendered scroll of natural history paintings was executed, with one exception, by Akio (or Keigu) Yamamoto (1827-1903), Confucian scholar, doctor, botanist, and highly gifted artist. He was born in Kyoto, the son of the prominent doctor and botanist Boyo Yamamoto (1778-1859), the direct disciple of Ono Ranzan (1729-1810), the famous professor of botany who wrote a series of classic botanical books. Keigu "continued his father's work in his private school in Osaka and spent his time organizing meetings that were regularly attended by both honzogaku amateurs and Japanese biologists."-Federico Marcon, The Knowledge of Nature and the Nature of Knowledge in Early Modern Japan, p. 301. Keigu travelled widely throughout Japan, drawing plants and animals. He gave botanical instruction to the Meiji emperor and other members of the royal family. Keigu also wrote several standard works on materia… Read More

Eight vols. 8vo, orig. wrappers, orig. stitching. [Beijing]: Gu gong bo wu yuan 故宮博物院, 1930. An important edition of this Chinese work on foreign countries from the late 16th century. Ming China was a well-connected player in the elaborate international exchange known as early modern globalization. The Ming court dispatched ships to far-away places, Ming merchants traded in East and Southeast Asia, and numerous countries regularly sent embassies to the Ming court. Our book draws on these exchanges. Foreign states covered include Korea, Japan, Ryūkyū, the oasis polities of eastern Central Asia, the "Tartars," and other tribes on the northern border. Yan Congjian (b. 1529) was a scholar-official from Zhejiang. Upon passing the highest-level civil service examination in 1559, he was assigned to the Messenger Office, "a central government agency attached to the Ministry of Rites." The office's "principal function was to deliver formal, non-routine documents to important dignitaries… Read More

66 vols. Small 8vo, orig. wrappers, orig. stitching. [China]: 1930. The excellent facsimile edition of this voluminous and groundbreaking collection of Chinese prose from before the Tang dynasty, edited by Yan Kejun (style name Tieqiao 鐵橋, 1762-1843). Yan held a provincial examination degree and worked as a school instructor. After the Qing court in 1808 initiated a project to publish all the remaining prose from the Tang period (618-907 CE), Yan took it upon himself to publish all of the prose that remained from before that time. He spent nine years producing a first draft and another 18 years editing it. In 1834, the manuscript was finished, but it was never printed during his lifetime. Yan used all the sources available to a scholar in early 19th-century China, including earlier anthologies, epigraphic rubbings, and the Daoist and Buddhist canons. "For that reason, completeness is the most important characteristic of this book. Regardless of whether one considers the list of authors… Read More

Full-page color-printed frontis. (in Vol. II) & 12 fine double-page colored-printed woodcuts. 17.5; 18.5 folding leaves. Two vols. 8vo, orig. semi-stiff boards, woodblock-printed title labels on upper covers, new stitching. [Japan, probably Edo]: 1824 or 1836. First edition of this rare deluxe erotic work; we find no copy in WorldCat (but there is a copy at the Smithsonian). The artist, Yanagawa (active ca. 1820s-late 1850s), who also used the name Yoshinobu Koikawa, studied under Shigenobu I (1787-1832). Following the death of his teacher, he took his name and began signing his works as Shigenobu II. This beautifully printed shunga exhibits highly detailed and complex color printing, ample bokashi, subtle embossing, and extended use of metallic pigments, including gold and silver. Each illustration has been titled with an explanatory pun, with musical overtones and sexual undertones. For instance, one scene depicts a couple having a sudden tryst on an outdoor porch. The caption reads (in… Read More

Four vols. 8vo, orig. wrappers, orig. block-printed title labels on upper covers, orig. stitching. Hangzhou: 1929. First edition of this bibliography and index of the contents of the Siku quanshu 四庫全書 [Complete Library of the Four Treasuries], compiled in 1773-92. For a detailed account of the making of this massive work, "an anthology to end all anthologies, an authoritative compendium of everything worthwhile ever" (Elliott, Emperor Qianlong, p. 118). See further R. Kent Guy's The Emperor's Four Treasuries. Fine set, preserved in a hantao. Some pale dampstaining in Vol. I. Occasional foxing. References Elliott, Mark C. Emperor Qianlong: Son of Heaven, Man of the World. New York: Longman, 2009. Guy, R. Kent. The Emperor's Four Treasuries: Scholars and the State in the Late Ch'ien-lung Era. Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Press, 1987.

Three vols. 8vo, orig. wrappers, orig. stitching. [Changsha]: Sixian jiangshe 思賢講舍, 1891. Critical edition by Guo Qingfan 郭慶藩 (1844-96) of this key lexicographical work from the Han dynasty, published along with two sequels. Yang Xiong's (53 BCE-18 CE) The Imperial Light Carriage Emissary...through the Ages, commonly referred to as Regional Words, or Fangyan 方言, is one of the foundational texts of the Chinese lexicographical tradition. The book "collected synonyms taken from different dialects and languages, gathered by court messengers who had been sent to various regions of China" (Bottéro, "Ancient China," 57). In Yang Xiong's time, China was united under the Han dynasty, which ruled a vast territory of great linguistic diversity. Yang documented this diversity. In his own words: Whenever Presenters of Annual Accounts and the "Filial and Incorrupt" from the various parts of the empire as well as the interior commandery military officers convened at the capital, I always took… Read More

Four vols. Small 8vo, orig. printed wrappers (some dampstaining throughout), orig. stitching. Shanghai: Zhonghua shu ju [Zhonghua Book Company], 1936. The series Sibu beiyao [Essential Writings of the Four Branches of Literature] (1920-33), consisted of edited reprints of 336 titles of rare literary and historical collections organized according to the classical method of the four categories of learning. The series was the brain-child of the enterprising Lufei Kui (1896-1941), educational reformer, pioneer of script reform, and founder of the Zhonghua Book Company, in 1912. The company soon became the second-most influential publishing firm in Republican China, surpassed only by the Commercial Press. The present work is the bibliographical précis of the early and later editions of the books included in the collection (congshu). The handsome typeface is known as Fangsong ti, new Song-style characters, used by Lufei Kui in many of his books. A very good set. In spite of the dampstaining, the text is… Read More

Six vols. 8vo, orig. blue wrappers, new stitching. Suzhou: Zhenxin shushe 振新書社, n.d. An uncommon work on historical Chinese phonology. "Mr. Yao was of the opinion that 'In antiquity, the character yun 韻, 'rhyme', ought to have been xie 諧, 'harmonization'. Only later did it shift to yun. This book takes harmonized sounds (xiesheng 諧聲) as its basis, hence the title Gu yin xie [Harmonizations of Ancient Rhymes]. It merges the even, rising, and departing tones of Guangyun 廣韻 [Expanded Rhymes] into 17 groups, spread out over 7 categories. The entering-tone characters are divided into 9 groups, all gathered in 1 category. Under every group, characters from rhymed text from the Zhou, Qin, and Han periods are included, arranged in tonal order. Following every tonal section, there is a 'comprehensive investigation' (zongkao 總考), in which the rhyming characters under a given tone are connected to all the characters with which it is said to be similarly pronounced (xiesheng) in Shuo… Read More

48 folding leaves. 8vo, orig. wrappers, orig. stitching (coming loose). Changsha: [Privately published by] Ye shi 葉氏, 1908. A collection of ancient Daoist medical texts, published by the scholar, bibliophile, and publisher Ye Dehui (1864-1927). According to the Preface of our book, "these classics are all discussing matters of the bedchamber." That is to say, they are collections of a sexological nature. Through certain sexual practices, one is supposed to maintain good health. These practices tally with a greater Taoist interest in nourishing life in search for longevity and immortality. Ye explains in the Preface to Classic of the Plain Maiden (dated 1903, guimao) that the text was mentioned in medieval bibliographies but subsequently not seen in China. Ye recovered it from the medieval Japanese medical work Ishinpō 醫心方 from 982 CE. To our knowledge, our book is the earliest extant edition of the Classic of the Plain Maiden to be published in China. The versos of the title pages… Read More

48 folding leaves. 8vo, orig. wrappers, orig. stitching (somewhat loose). Changsha: Ye shi 葉氏, n.d. but 1899 (date of Prefaces). [with]: -. Kunlun bi yong ji 崑崙皕詠集 [Two Hundred Chants from Kunlun]. 43 folding leaves. 8vo, orig. wrappers, orig. stitching (somewhat loose). Changsha: Ye shi guan gu tang 葉氏觀古堂, 1904. Two collections of classical Chinese poetry by a prominent editor and publisher of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Classical Chinese verse matured in the medieval period, but poems written according to its conventions continued to be produced into the 20th century. Exchanging poems was an important part of elite sociability and many of the poems in our collections were offered to others. Kunlun ji contains verse by Yi Shunding 易顺鼎 (1858-1920), Zhu Yijun 朱益濬 (1847-1920), Li Xianglin 李祥霖, and Ye Dehui (1864-1927), who edited and published them. There is an appendix with verse by more individuals, including the monk Jing'an 敬安… Read More

Wood-block printed. 23 folding leaves. Folio (364 x 270 mm.), orig. wrappers (wrappers somewhat soiled & marked), new stitching. [Andong: Privately Printed at] Tosan sŏwŏn [or Dosan seowon], [most likely 1578 or, perhaps, 1638]. First edition, privately printed at the Tosan Academy, the private Confucian academy established in 1574, following Yi's death; this is certainly one of the earliest books to be printed there, if not the first. Yi Hwang (1501-70), also known as Yi T'oegye, was the most influential Neo-Confucian thinker in Chosŏn Korea (his portrait was used on the 1000 won banknote from 1975 to 2007). The academy named in his honor is today a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Plum blossoms were an old motif in Chinese and Korean literature. Yi had an "ardent love" for plum blossoms as they often began to bloom in the middle of winter. He found them the perfect subject to express the value of endurance and self-cultivation. Yi turned to writing poetry as an escape from the partisan politics… Read More

Edited by Yi To-jung 李度中. One woodblock text diagram. 62 folding leaves. Large 8vo (307 x 207 mm.), orig. semi-stiff wrappers (wrappers slightly soiled), orig. stitching. Korea: 1816. Yi I (1536-84) was one of the most important Neo-Confucian thinkers of Chosŏn Korea. This book is concerned with sŏng (Ch.: xing), "human nature," and i (Ch.: li), "principle" or "coherence." These were key concepts in Neo-Confucian metaphysics. Indeed, in Chinese, Neo-Confucianism is often called "the learning of nature and principle" (Ch.: xingli xue 性理學). Yi To-jung, the descendant of one of Yi I's disciples, excerpted texts dealing with human nature and principle from Yi I's Yulgok chŏnsŏ 栗谷全書 [Complete Writings from Chestnut Valley] to make the present work. The book's colophon, written by Pak Ki-jik 朴基稷, is dated pyŏngja 丙子, which the cataloguers of the Kyujanggak copy and those of the Harvard-Yenching copy conjecture refers to 1816. By contrast, the Berkeley catalogue… Read More

19 folding leaves. Large 8vo (293 x 189 mm.), orig. brown patterned semi-stiff wrappers, orig. stitching. Jeollanam-do: Chukkok chŏngsa , 1929. An exceedingly rare edition of Yi I's Ŭnp'yŏng chŏngsa hakkyu (or Eunpyeong jeongsa hakkyu) 隱屏精舍學規 [School Rules for the Hidden Study Hall], Ŭnp'yŏng chŏngsa yaksok 隱屏精舍約束 [Compact for the Hidden Study Hall], and related texts as an independent work on "school rules." We find no other copy in WorldCat, the Korean Old and Rare Collection Information System, or in other catalogues available to us. The copy at the Academy of Korean Studies (Jangseogak, MF35/8172) appears to be from a different edition, as the catalogue gives no publisher. These texts are usually found as a part of Yi's collected works. Yi I (Yi Yulgok 栗谷, 1536-84) was an official and one of the most influential Neo-Confucian thinkers of the Chosŏn period. The first text of this collection is titled "school regulations" (hakkyo kyubŏm 學校規範) and is… Read More

41 folding leaves. Large 8vo (337 x 206 mm.), orig. semi-stiff wrappers, new stitching. [Korea]: Simdo 沁都, 1756. First edition and rare; WorldCat lists only one printed copy, at Berkeley. This book of exhortations on good government, with striking royal calligraphy, was written by King Yŏngjo (or Yeongjo) of Chosŏn (1694-1776) in 1756. At this time, Yŏngjo was commemorating the death of his father, the previous king. According to Fang Chaoying (1908-85), Yŏngjo, then in his 65th year, "could not foresee that he was to live twenty more years, and so it appears that he was trying to justify himself in his own mind with regard to posterity as well as to the ancestors whom he expected to face any day" (The Asami Library, 115). Yŏngjo offered three main principles for a king to follow: "to venerate Heaven, to love the people, and to treat the officials with respect" (ibid.). Large standard script characters written by the king himself are reproduced in the beginning of the book. The king's… Read More

Four leaves of illus. 30 folding leaves. Large 8vo (305 x 208 mm.), orig. yellow semi-stiff wrappers (upper wrappers somewhat soiled, both wrappers with some worming), new stitching. [Korea]: 1765. First edition of this book published on royal command by King Yŏngjo of Chosŏn. The book was compiled by Kim Kwi-ju 金龜柱 (1740-86), the older brother of Queen Consort Chŏngsun (1745-1805). The royal Preface is furthermore written in Kim's standard script calligraphy. Years after the compilation of this book, factional intrigue under Yŏngjo's successor, Chŏngjo, led to Kim being exiled, after which he soon died. Our book outlines sacrifices at the Confucian temple in Seoul, including the Kyesŏng 啓聖祠 and Songjŏl 崇節祠 shrines. The Kyesŏng shrine, built in 1669, was the site of sacrifices to the fathers of several Confucian sages, including Confucius and Mencius. At the temple as a whole, a number of Chinese and Korean Confucian sages and worthies were worshipped. The book contains… Read More

Six double-page woodcuts. 22.5; 21.5; 25.5 folding leaves. Three vols. 8vo, orig. semi-stiff wrappers (rather tired), orig. block-printed title labels on upper covers (one label quite rubbed & defective), new stitching. From the colophon: Edo et al.: Suharaya Mohei, 1768. First edition of this rare ukiyozoshi ["books of the floating world"], a type of prose story popular in the 18th century, intensely realistic and usually involving ordinary townspeople. We find no copy of this book in WorldCat. This collection of 21 witty stories, full of puns and double-meanings, is based on the famous Chinese mythological story of the Yama King [J.: Enma o], the Buddhist lord of death and the king of hell. In his court, he sits next to a huge crystal mirror (johari kagami). Souls stand in front of this mirror and see themselves in their past lives, perceiving their crimes and unvirtuous actions. The Yama King bases the judgment he gives on these appearances, condemning them to one of ten hells. At the… Read More

Seven folding leaves. 8vo (248 x 174 mm.), orig. wrappers, stitched as issued. [Japan]: date given on final page "1768"; this is a later copy, probably late Edo or early Meiji. We are uncertain how to read the first name of Yoshimura, but "Hensen" is our best guess. Yoshimura lived in the Satsuma region. This manuscript is concerned with different theories of ginseng as a medicinal herb. The author discusses the writings of Zhang Zhongjing (active 168-96 CE), whose Shanghan lun [Treatise on Cold Damage] lists 21 multi-herbal decoctions containing ginseng, and Li Dongyuan (1180-1251), whose therapies were widely adapted and established in Japan. Fine copy. Minor worming.

28 engraved plates (many are folding) & six folding printed tables. Four vols. 8vo, cont. polished calf (each lower joint with a slight crack, head of one spine with the slightest chip), spines finely & richly gilt, red & green morocco lettering pieces on spines. London: W. Strahan et al., 1770. First edition, and a lovely set in attractive contemporary bindings. "On this tour Young travelled 2,500 miles from Bradfield to the northern boundary of England, across country westward, and so in a wide sweep back home, and he collected statistical data from some 250 farms of all sizes and descriptions. These data he attempted to assemble in which is perhaps the first farm survey ever undertaken by an individual in order to use them in the discussion of current farming problems."-Fussell, II, p. 72. The text includes a great many statistics on agricultural wages, local variations of method and diet, the state of roads, and even the character of the inns in which Young stayed.… Read More