Primary Sources
Western Books on China

This new online collection comprises a descriptive, annotated bibliography of 654 early Western books on Imperial China up to 1850, all to be found in the Library of the School of Oriental and African Studies, London. The collection is based on the book Western Books on China published up to 1850 by John Lust.

The material is of unique historical interest, containing scrutiny of China by Western societies. The material contains an abundance of observations. The books, in a variety of Western languages, testify to the formidable difficulties encountered by Westerners, who attempted to extend their own familiar historical, linguistic and religious perceptions to the Chinese context.

In 1987 the project was published by IDC on microfiche. Now the collection is completely digitized to be published in an online subscription-based environment. The collection offers advanced research tools, such as MARC applications for the bibliographical material. Sources are now ranged by subject and all texts are fully readable. Search on title, author, language, year and place of publication is all possible. All pages can be printed and downloaded.

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