The History of Chinese Printing covers in great detail the history of more than 1,000 years since the invention of printing in China. The book is divided into three parts-the invention and development of block printing, the invention and development of moveable type printing, and the influence of Chinese printing on Asia, Africa and Europe-and thoroughly discusses all aspects of Chinese printing, including locations of printers, contents of woodblock printed books, features of various editions, and different methods of printing. The book is the most comprehensive, systematic and authoritative work in this field hitherto. This book is regarded by scholars both in and outside of China as an epoch-making masterpiece in the study of Chinese printing history and it lays a solid foundation for research work on the entire Chinese cultural history. Zhang Xiumin was a researcher at the National Library of China for over forty years. He spent his whole life studying the history of printing, and published many authoritative treatises on the subject. He was an internationally acknowledged scholar on the history of Chinese printing. PRAISE FOR The History of Chinese Printing "Now, with publication of Zhang Xiumin"s The History of Chinese Printing, this lack [of a comprehensive, detailed and systematic study of the history and development of Chinese printing] has been largely remedied as it makes an important contribution to the study of the history of culture, science and technology in China." -Dr. Tsien Tsuen-Hsuin, University of Chicago, and author of Science and Civilisation in China: Volume 5:1 by Joseph Needham "This is your significant contribution to the study of Chinese printing history." -Dr. Soren Edgren, Princeton University, and Chinese book specialist "Very substantial and comprehensive in its content. It is both unprecedented and unrepeatable." -Tan Qixiang, Professor and historian, Fudan University, Shanghai, China