Science and Civilisation in China

Part one of the fifth volume of Joseph Needham's great enterprise is written by one of the project's collaborators. Professor Tsien Tsuen-Hsuin, working in regular consultation with Dr Needham, has written the most comprehensive account of every aspect of paper and printing in China to be published in the West. From a close study of the vast mass of source material, Professor Tsien brings order and illumination to an area of technology which has been of profound importance in the spread of civilisation. The main body of the book is a detailed study of the invention, technology and aesthetic development of printing in China. From the growth and ultimate refinements of early woodcut printing to the spread of printing from movable type and the development of book-binding, Professor Tsien carries the story forward to the beginning of the nineteenth century when 'more printed pages existed in Chinese than in all other languages put together'.

Reviews & endorsements

"[An] astonishing and enduring study...[Needham brings] depth of emotion and technical finesse to his task."
Jonathan Spence, New York Review of Books

Customer reviews

Product details

• Date Published: August 1985
• format: Hardback
• isbn: 9780521086905
• length: 504 pages

• dimensions: 246 x 189 x 40 mm
• weight: 1.382kg
• availability: Temporarily unavailable - available from TBC