In the 13th year of Tongzhi in the Qing Dynasty (1874), the education community in Jilin Province ushered in a grand event. Chongwen Academy, built with donations from local gentry, officially opened. Since then, the children of Han Chinese in Jilin City can also go to school to study. Chongwen Academy, Baishan Academy and Biaozheng Academy are known as the three major academies in Jilin in the Qing Dynasty.
Because Jilin is located in the border area, cultural education has been developed late, and books and materials are in short supply, which cannot meet the needs of scholars. Faced with the desire for knowledge among the students in the country, the famous general Sheng Fu generously took out his savings for many years, purchased hundreds of classics, history, and donated them to Chongwen Academy, and founded the "Tanyuan Book Boat".
"Danyuan Shufang" is a source of knowledge in the Han culture in Jilin Province and an important milestone in the history of Jilin's cultural development. Its founder Sheng Fu not only donated money and books to Jilin Education, but also made great achievements in engraving and printing books. He was one of the earliest calligraphers in Jilin.
Sheng Fu, a from the Zhengbai Banner of Mongolia, was born in Wula, Jilin in 1837. His father, Yixinge , was a famous general in Jilin. He was promoted to general after he died in the battlefield. When Sheng Fu was a teenager, his family was not well off. Because his father was in the army for many years, the young man Shengfu relied on his relatives and friends to take care of him most of the time. It was not until Yixing Erjin was appointed as an official in the court that his family's situation improved.
A young man from Sheng Fu worked hard to study, and his writing skills were quite good. After his father passed away, he wrote four volumes of "The Facts of Yi Zhuangmin Gong Xing" and was included in the "Eight Banner Art and Literature Catalogue" compiled by Enhua, a Mongolian bannerman.
Although Sheng Fu was born in a family of ministers, he was generous, did not envy fame and fortune, spoke frankly about current problems, was honest and dedicated to the public, and did not favor personal feelings. The remaining taxes were used to provide relief to the people, and was deeply appreciated by the general of Jilin.
Since the 16th year of the Guangxu period (1890), Sheng Fu spent 12 years saving his life and frugality, carving books diligently, and engraving dozens of books including history, Neo-Confucianism, art, epigraphy and , medicine, etc., integrating the "Tanyuan Books" series, and giving them to relatives and friends in the village and poor scholars who had no money to buy books for free. It was very popular among Jilin officials and students.
"Tanyuan Shufang Series" is divided into the first collection and the second collection, with a total of 27 volumes. Books during the Qing Dynasty were very complicated and arduous. To use pear wood or jujube wood as the plate, carve the pictures and texts with a carving knife, then apply ink on the plate, cover the paper on the ink plate, and then use a brush to brush on the paper. After finishing one, gently peel it off, place it in a cool place to dry, and then repeat the printing. Time-consuming and laborious.
And at that time, both the plate, paper and ink oil were very expensive. Therefore, Zhao Yunhui, a famous scholar in Jilin, wrote a preface for the book engraved by Sheng Fu, saying that he "really frugal and frugal, or borrowed clothes to publish rare books."
The earliest official engraved edition of Jilin's book "Jilin Tongzhi" was published after being published by Jilin General Changshun in 1891. It was set up in the backyard of Chongwen Academy.
Sheng Fu's engraving began almost at the same time as the compilation of "Jilin Tongzhi" and was written at the same time. In the cultural history of Jilin, these two iconic cultural classics, private and official, complement each other, and jointly create a new cultural atmosphere.
Produced by Jilin Daily
Planning: Jiang Zhongxiao
Author: Li Xia
Editor: Ma He
