Search Results: Titles starting with H from Jonathan A. Hill, Bookseller, Inc.

Several folding tables. Three vols. 8vo, orig. blue wrappers, orig. block-printed title labels on upper cover, new stitching. Beijing: Zhonghua yinshuju, 1936. First edition. Much of Chinese historical phonology has focused on the study of rhyme books and poetry. The rhyme books are a kind of dictionary in which Chinese characters are arranged by rhyme. When modern historical phonology emerged in the early 20th century from the two traditions of European comparative linguistics and Qing-era philology, the focus was on the rhyme books of the Sui and Tang periods, and on the rhymes used in the ancient Poetry Classic. Rhyme books only existed from the Sui dynasty (581-618 CE) onward, so it was not possible to use them as a source for earlier periods. To fill this gap, Yu Anlan used poetry and rhyme prose from various historical anthologies, as well as epigraphic material. The way writers of the past rhymed in their literary writings allowed him to establish which sounds had sounded alike at various… Read More

Facsimiles, photographic reproductions, & some printing in red ink. 32 vols. Small 8vo, orig. printed wrappers, orig. stitching. [Shanghai]: Shang wu yin shu guan 商務印書館, 1917-1924. An uncommon collectanea (congshu 叢書) of rare books and texts from one of the major collections of early 20th-century China. Hanfen Lou, or the "Pavilion Containing Fragrances," was the rare book department of the Commercial Press (Shangwu yinshuguan), one of the two biggest publishers of China in the Republican era. The name of the department was inspired by the phrase "enveloping the perfume of books of good editions, knowledge becomes fragrant." In 1924, the book collection was integrated into the Library of the East (Dongfang tushuguan 東方圖書舘), a privately funded public library. The building was destroyed in the January 28 incident, which brought China into conflict with Japan. The public-spiritedness of the Hanfen lou venture is reflected in the Preface to our set, which begins with a quote… Read More

89 folding leaves. 8vo, orig. wrappers, orig. stitching. [China]: [Privately Printed] by Xushou tang Wang shi 虛受堂王氏 1872. First edition of this philological work on a corpus of so-called yue fu 樂府, or "Music Bureau poems." Yue fu "originally referred to the Music Bureau founded in 117 B.C." Music Bureau poems "also designated...poems commissioned for ritual purposes, poems selected to be set to music, or simply anonymous folksongs collected by the bureau from provincial regions as a way of gauging the common people's reactions to the central government. In time, the term yüeh-fu [yue fu] was extended to include songs by the common people as well as works by men of letters which drew on the titles, tunes, and narrative motifs of the original folk ballads" (The Indiana Companion to Traditional Chinese Literature, Vol. 1, 961). Our work is centered on a subset of yue fu, a corpus by aristocratic poets written in a genre that has proven difficult for later readers to make sense of. Such… Read More

Five full-page botanical woodcuts. 28 folding leaves. 8vo, orig. brown wrappers, new stitching. [Probably printed in today's Miyagi Prefecture, Japan]: first Preface dated 1798. First edition of this very rare provincial imprint; no copy in WorldCat. Fujitsuka (1737-99), was born in humble surroundings, and his parents died early. An excellent student, he was adopted by the master of the Shiogama Jinja shrine in Miyagi Prefecture. Fujitsuka eventually married the daughter of the shrine master and was able to pursue his scholarly activities. A bibliophile with a large library, he studied Shinto theology, ancient stele, early waka poetry, and materia medica. He had many friends who were artists and poets. Late in life, he was exiled because of his religious beliefs. The hana katsumi is a mythical plant, supposedly found in marshlands. This plant was first written about in the Man'yoshu [Collection of Ten Thousand Leaves], compiled sometime after 759, the oldest extant collection of Japanese waka. In… Read More

15 folding lithographed plates (three handcolored). xvi, 631, [1] pp.; xiv, 1104 pp. Two vols. 8vo, cont. half-sheep & marbled boards (lower joint of Vol. I partly cracked but strong, minor foxing), spines gilt. Karlsruhe: C.T. Groos, 1829-32. First edition of one of the most extensive introductions to mineralogy and geology of the period. Walchner (1799-1865), was professor at the University of Freiburg and, in 1825, was appointed professor of mineralogy, geology, and chemistry at the Polytechnic of Karlsruhe. He wrote many books and articles. "Very scarce. A technical treatment of mineralogy designed to be sufficient for the isolated amateur to study the subject. It covers all the basic elements including crystallography, physical and chemical properties, and a lengthy descriptive portion that covers the various mineral species. One section provides a list of recently published mineralogical literature."-Schuh, Mineralogy & Crystallography: A Biobibliography, 1469 to… Read More

15 brush & black ink drawings pasted-in and 11 brush & ink drawings directly painted on the scroll (see below). With text on inside & outside of scroll. Siddham script used in the scroll. Scroll (330 x 12,130 mm.), wooden core roller. [Japan]: from recto of scroll at end: "Tenth day of the eighth month of the fourth year of Karyaku [1329]." This handscroll is part of a larger Japanese work of Buddhist scrolls known as Kakuzenshō [Collected Notes of Kakuzen], one of the two major collections of ritual texts from the period (see Richard Bowing, The Religious Traditions of Japan 500-1600, Cambridge U.P.: 2008, p. 342). The compiler was the early Kamakura-period Shingon monk Kakuzen 覚禅 (b. 1143-ca. 1213), a cleric of the Ono branch, who studied under several great masters including Kozen (1121-1203). Kakuzen produced this work between 1176 and 1213. If our conjecture is correct (see below), this copy was made in 1329. Rather than a copy of the first scroll of Doctrine of the Sutra for Humane Kings,… Read More

20 fine brush & black ink drawings of deities & several smaller images. Scroll (290 x 11,980 mm.), delicately ruled in gray ink, wooden roller. [Japan]: 17th-18th century copy? A copy of the eighth scroll from the ten-scroll set known alternatively as "Zuzōshō" 図像抄 ["Annotated Drawings"] or "Sonyōshō" 尊容抄 ["Annotations on the Noble Countenances [of the Deities Depicted]"], along with "Jikkanshō" 十巻抄 ["Annotations of Ten Scrolls"]. Our scroll is also entitled on outside of scroll "Sho myōō" 諸明王 ["The Various Wisdom Kings"]. The original was made in Japan in 1139-1140 CE (Hoen 5), towards the end of the Heian period. This set of scrolls is associated with esoteric Buddhism and depicts Buddhas, bodhisattvas, devas, and wisdom kings (myōō). It is not known if the scrolls were actually used as guides to worship, but they were clearly assembled with this purpose in mind. Early sources ascribe the scrolls to different authors, either Yōgon 永厳 (d. 1151) or Ejū 恵什.… Read More

Scroll on paper (260 x 2440 mm.), carefully backed, new silk front endpapers, wooden core roller. [Nikko?]: with date "20 April 1863" at beginning. During the Edo period, the Nikko Gohan Shiki ceremony was held frequently at the Rinnoji temple in Nikko. The ceremony was part of Nikko's ancient mountain Buddhism. Paying visitors entered the Sanbutsu-do Hall to witness the ritual of compulsory rice eating. A procession of monks, led by a yamabushi (mountain priest) blowing a trumpet shell, entered the hall. The monks dispensed large bowls to six participants, each containing 5.4 liters of cooked rice, representing 75 bowlfuls (the number "75" in Buddhism represents all creation). Although all the participants were urged to eat every grain, the rice was actually not eaten. It was believed that those who participated in or witnessed the ceremony would have good family fortune and a happy life. Our scroll contains five scenes, all painted with fine coloring. We learn at the beginning that the detailed… Read More

Numerous paintings throughout. Scroll (150 x 5840 mm.), green silk brocade on front outer endpaper. "Egawa Village": with "February 1845" at end. The making of Japanese swords is a complex and labor-intensive process, taking many days or weeks. Considered a sacred art, it was traditionally accompanied by many Shinto and Buddhist religious rituals. Our scroll tells the story of the earliest days of the making of superior swords in Japan when, in 1208, the retired Emperor Go-Toba summoned 13 of the finest sword smiths in Japan in sequential visits, listed here with their names and provinces, to share their secrets in making higher-quality swords. The emperor also granted the 13 sword smiths court rank and titles, greatly elevating their status and profession. The beginning of the scroll provides an index of the topics discussed and illustrated. The text, in kanji and with three phrases in Siddham, states that the makers of swords must pray to Buddhist gods for protection. All the information in this… Read More

19 brush & black ink fine drawings. With text on inside & outside of scroll (some corrections using white paint & black ink). Annotations partially in red ink. Some Siddham characters. Scroll (295 x 6465 mm.), outside of scroll at beginning covered with floral silk brocade, wooden core roller. [Japan]: second colophon dated "early September 1779." A scroll with instructions for drawing the Mandala of the Two Realms, which is associated with the Shingon school of esoteric Buddhism. The complicated mandala contains numerous deities arranged around a core. These deities are depicted in turn in a set of 19 complex and vivid illustrations divided into 17 sections. The illustrations are finely drawn in black ink. The scroll opens with the title "Master of the Three Realms" (sangaishu 三界主), which is followed by several illustrations. The first depicts the "King Polluted by Desire" 愛染王, or Rāgarāja, one of the wise kings (myōō 明王). He is followed by two images, containing several… Read More

Illus. throughout. [13] leaves & ads. Square 4to, pictorial wrappers, staple-bound. Aachen: 1971. Scarce exhibition catalogue for a Hansjoachim Dietrich (b. 1938) solo exhibition. In fine condition.

Seven full-page woodcuts & a few smaller text illus. 49 folding leaves. 8vo, orig. wrappers, orig. title label on upper cover with title in manuscript, modern stitching. Wakayama: Kasedaya Hiemon et al., 1818. First edition of Takebe's translation and commentary of Lorenz Heister's writings on infections and their treatment. Heister (1683-1758), wrote one of the best and most complete works on surgery of the 18th century. Translated into Japanese, it was enormously successful, introducing Western methods to many Japanese surgeons. Takebe (1782-1842), a samurai, has included here all of Heister's writings on infections and has provided a number of his own cases histories. A number of pharmaceutical recipes are described including aloe (the plant is illustrated on two pages). Methods of lancing are illustrated along with a number of Western surgical instruments. Very nice copy.

Mimeographed illus. [12] leaves. 12mo (144 x 107 mm.), staple-bound. Amsterdam: Daylight Press, [1976]. A scarce artist's book by Padín (b. 1939), published through Ulises Carrión's roving Daylight Press because of stringent censorship in Uruguay. In this book, Padín, a mail artist and poet, directs his ire not at the military dictatorship controlling his home country, but at the American companies that continued to conduct business with Uruguay, despite sanctions instituted by the United States government. In her examination of this book, Michaëla de Lacaze cogently writes: "After tearing open an envelope, the work's first North American recipients might have been amused to discover yet another mysterious package - the surprise birthday present depicted on the booklet's cover. Festooned with a ludicrously large bow, the gift beckons to be unwrapped, but the only option is to thumb through its text. With every turn of the page, however, the sanguinity of the work's title and first illustration… Read More

2 p.l., x, vi, iv, ii, 195, [2] pp.; 2 p.l., 210, [2] pp. Two vols. 8vo, orig. printed wrappers (some foxing), orig. printed title labels on upper covers, orig. stitching. Beijing: Yanjing da xue tu shu guan Yin de bian zuan chu [Harvard Yenching University Library], February 1932. First edition, part of the famous Harvard-Yenching Institute Sinological Index Series. These indexes/concordances were important milestones, since the corpora had not previously been equipped with such reference works. Our volumes are indexes to the bibliography of Siku quanshu [Complete Library of the Four Treasuries], compiled in 1773-92, and of the books not included. For a detailed account of the making of this massive work, "an anthology to end all anthologies, an authoritative compendium of everything worthwhile ever written in Chinese, regardless of genre, epoch, or length" (Mark C. Elliott, Emperor Qianlong. Son of Heaven, Man of the World, p. 118), see R. Kent Guy's The Emperor's Four Treasuries. Scholars and the… Read More

97 pages. Small 8vo, orig. printed wrappers. Shanghai: Xin wenhua shushe 新文化書社, 1934. Typeset and punctuated edition of this late Qing satirical novel. He dian was first published in 1878 in Shanghai. It uses stories of ghosts (the living ghost, the lusty ghost, the stinky ghost, and even a tofu-rice-stew ghost) to criticize the social mores and political situation of late Qing China. One important characteristic of the novel is its use of Wu Chinese, the dialect spoken in Suzhou and Shanghai. Little is known about the author of the novel. In 1926, the writer and linguist Liu Bannong 劉半農 (Liu Fu, 1891-1934) punctuated the text to produce a new edition. ❧ Zhou Zhenfu 周振甫 et al., eds. Zhong-wai xiaoshuo da cidian 中外小说大辞典. Beijing: Xiandai chubanshe, 1990.

Six vols. 8vo, orig. wrappers, orig. stitching. [China]: 1922 or 1925? A collection of biographies of individuals from Heilongjiang, including several Manchus. The book begins in antiquity (Han period) and continues up until Qing times, which is its true focus. Huang Weihan (1867-1930), initially served at the Board of War and in other positions but was subsequently transferred to Manchuria, where he would work in a variety of capacities. He was relieved of office following the Republican revolution in 1911, but later worked in two stints on the compilation of a gazetteer for Heilongjiang. It is possible that our book is related to Huang's work on the gazetteer. Our copy contains no publication information, but it is in six physical volumes like WorldCat 57439958. The cataloguers of that item infer that it was published in 1925, which might be the date for our copy. Wang Shuzhan's 王樹枬 Preface is dated 1922. The colophon is printed in running calligraphy. Fine set, preserved in a… Read More

24; 46 folding leaves. Two vols. 8vo, orig. blue wrappers, orig. block-printed title labels on upper covers, new stitching. Osaka, Kyoto, Nagoya, & Edo: Kawachiya Kihei et al., 1848. Second edition (1st ed.: 1770); both editions are very rare. This book, in Chinese with Japanese reading marks, is the commentary by Asai (1706-80), the famous painter of bamboo and court physician of the Owari fiefdom, on the biography of Bian Que (active sometime in 5th-3rd centuries B.C.), the founding father of scientific Chinese medicine. This biography first appeared in Shiji [Records of the Grand Historian], written by Sima Qian. The Shiji, completed ca. 94 B.C., is the first of the monumental series of Chinese dynastic histories. "Bian Que is said to have learnt and applied a range of medical techniques including acupuncture and moxibustion, drug preparation, and therapeutic massage. He is also credited with special expertise in pulse diagnosis. Shiji calls him China's first pulse-diagnostician, and presents him… Read More

16 pp. 8vo, a wonderful cont. binding by George Mullen of Dublin (with his ticket) of cream-colored straight-grained morocco (spine very slightly darkened), richly gilt & blind-tooled, around sides gilt roll borders in a "Gothic" design, flanked by quadruple gilt fillets, central panels decorated in blind, in center of each cover a large lozenge-shaped arabesque blind stamp, inner arabesque cornerpieces; inside borders gilt, doublures & endleaves of blue watered silk, framed by blind ornamental borders, spine with four raised bands & richly gilt, second compartment with title lettered in gilt, a.e.g. [London: printed by W. Bulmer, [1814].]. First edition, limited to 36 copies only; one of the great Dibdin rarities, here bound, ca. 1816, in one of the masterpieces by George Mullen of Dublin, Ireland's finest binder of the period, with his ticket. In this work we find Dibdin in the guise of bookseller. In October 1814 Dibdin managed to purchase for 500 guineas from the… Read More

Black & white illus. throughout. Unpaginated. Large 4to, printed softcover, title on spine. [Geneva: Musée d'art moderne et contemporain, 2019]. The long-awaited companion volume to Hervé Fischer's seminal 1974 work on stamp art. From the lower cover (in trans.): "Conceived as the second volume of Fischer's book, Art & Communication marginale published by Balland, Paris, in 1974, the present work assembles an important group of specimens of artists' stamps collected by the Ecart group. Planned for printing repeatedly delayed between 1976 and 1980, the book did not appear until 2019, following the MAMCO project on Mail Art... "The printing of the contents of this volume begins in 1975 and the success of the gathering of stamps motivated the Ecart group to create an addendum in 1976, which is also included here..." As new. Unrecorded by WorldCat.

Port. on lower wrapper. [13] pp. 8vo, printed wrappers, staple-bound. Amsterdam: Boekie Woekie, 2012. A facsimile of Before and After, an unpublished typescript bookwork composed by Carrión in 1972. As suggested in Raul Marroquin's note at the end of the publication, this work may precede Sonnet(s). Fine; staples rusted. WorldCat locates no example in North America.