A copy of a limited edition Chinese book published in 1908, Jianhu nüxia Qiujun mubiao, fu Xiling shizi bei, xibao shilue, ji Wu Zhiying zhuan 鑑湖女俠秋君墓表 : 附西泠十字碑, 西報事略, 及吳芝瑛傳 (Epitaph for the Female Knight of Jianhu, Surname Qiu; the Stele of Ten-Words at Xiling; News Clippings from Western Newspapers; a Biographical Sketch of Wu Zhiying, Wife of Lian Quan), was recently acquired by UCI Libraries’ Research Librarian for Asian Studies Ying Zhang. With this acquisition, UCI Libraries became one of only five libraries in North America with a copy, which is valuable for those researching the history of printing and art in modern China.

A source of modern Chinese, art, and women’s history and an unusual specimen of hybrid early-modern printing, the rare text has already been useful for the research of UCI Professor of East Asian Studies Hu Ying.

Special Delivery

Hu Ying initially tried to obtain a copy of the book through UCI Libraries’ interlibrary loan service but was unsuccessful because there are so few copies in North America.

“No holding library was willing to lend their rare copy out,” explained Zhang.

At the time Hu Ying reached out for assistance, Zhang was attending a conference in China. With the help of a UCI library vendor, she was able to locate and purchase a copy from an online used bookstore in China. She then hand carried the book back to UCI.

Hu Ying, who is using the book to demonstrate the role of calligraphy and other visual material in early 20th century Chinese book publishing, is grateful for Zhang’s efforts to secure the rare text.

“I am writing a study of artworks included in commemorative volumes published in early 20th century China, in which this book is centrally featured,” said Hu Ying.

Beyond her research, Hu Ying believes the book will also be of great interest to scholars and students studying modern Chinese, art, and women’s history as well as Chinese book publications.

Book Content and Special Features

Featuring the handwriting of renowned calligrapher Wu Zhiying (1868–1934) as well as carefully produced stele rubbings of the tomb epitaph for Qiu Jin (1875–1908), Jian Hu Nu Xia Qiu Jun Mu Biao 鑑湖女俠秋君墓表 (Epitaph for the Female Knight of Jianhu…) tells the story of a young woman executed for her involvement in a military uprising against the Qing dynasty. The book’s art are reproduced through photolithography and printed on fine xuan paper, and the volume is thread-bound in traditional Chinese book format.

Published just a few months after Qiu Jin’s beheading, the book is a commemorative volume produced by her sworn-sister Wu Zhiying, who was blacklisted by the government for giving Qiu Jin a proper burial.

An unusual example of hybrid early-modern publication, the book also includes a photo reproduction of an English-language newspaper article by American missionary Luella Miner (1861–1935). The news clipping, which is reproduced through photolithography on high-quality glossy paper, details the public protest against the government persecution of Wu Zhiying.

East Asian Collection

Jian Hu Nu Xia Qiu Jun Mu Biao 鑑湖女俠秋君墓表 (Epitaph for the Female Knight of Jianhu…) is part of the UCI Libraries’ East Asian Collection, which was created in 1990 for the UCI community teaching about and doing research on East Asia. Local community members and others interested in East Asian materials are also welcome to browse the collection. Considered the largest East Asian Collection in Orange County, it contains almost 120,000 volumes in Chinese, Japanese, and Korean languages.

To learn more about this book or UCI Libraries’ East Asian Collection, contact the Research Librarian for Asian Studies Ying Zhang.