Work launched on Tsinghua University Warring States manuscripts

On April 27, the Research and Conservation Center for Unearthed Texts at Tsinghua University, together with Tsinghua University Press and XuetangX held a book launch in celebration of the publication of the first volume in the book series, "The Tsinghua University Warring States Bamboo Manuscripts: Studies and Translations".

With 18 volumes planned, The series is a systematic look at the Tsinghua University Warring States Bamboo Manuscripts. The series editors are Huang Dekuan, director of the center, and Edward L. Shaughnessy, director of the University of Chicago's Creel Center for Chinese Paleography. The series is published by Tsinghua University Press.

Each volume in the series presents the latest state of research and carefully annotated translations of a selection of manuscripts by a specialist in the field of early Chinese manuscript studies. The volumes bring together manuscripts from the Tsinghua University collection that are closely related in terms of text, topic, and materiality. The texts are presented in the original Warring States period (481-221 BCE) Chu-state script, transcriptions in modern standard Chinese and annotated English translation.

At the launch, Tian Lixin, director-general of the Ministry of Education’s Language and Information directorate, and Peng Gang, vice-president of Tsinghua University, delivered addresses. Qiu Xianqing, chairman of Tsinghua University Press, shared details of the publication process.

Huang introduced the scope and aims of the book series and the editing of the Tsinghua bamboo manuscripts, and Shaughnessy dicussed the content and format of the volume, the translation team and their work on the manuscripts. Additionally, various scholars both from within China and the international academic community provided their views on the significance of the series and this first volume.