12 columns per page, 23 characters per column. Printed in Hangul & Chinese characters throughout. 56; 48; 55; 50; 62 numbered folding leaves. Five vols. Large 8vo (330 x 215 mm.), orig. wrappers (wrappers somewhat rubbed), old stitching. Kyŏngsang: Provincial Government Offices, 1862.

A scarce translation into Korean, printed in Hangul and Chinese characters throughout, of the main text of the Document Classic, one of the oldest texts in the Confucian canon. It has been traditionally ascribed to several authors, including the Duke of Zhou. The Document Classic (or Book of Documents) contains documents purporting to originate with the earliest... More

Ten columns per page, 21 characters per column. Two sizes of type. 38 folding leaves. Large 8vo (321 x 200 mm.), orig. brown patterned wrappers, new stitching. [Seoul]: Pich’ŏndang 丕闡堂 Building, Sŏnggyun’gwan [today’s Sungkyunkwan University], 1872.

First edition and very rare; WorldCat lists only the Berkeley copy. “Scroll” is clearly used here as a figure of speech, as this is a codex-style book, printed using movable (metal or wooden?) type in 1872. Sungkyunkwan, established in 1398, was the highest educational institution in Chosŏn Korea. It is now the sight of an eponymous university. The location of the printing of this... More

1, 6, 11, 47 folding leaves. Large 8vo, orig. yellow patterned wrappers (wrappers a little soiled), orig. block-printed title label on upper cover, new stitching. [Korea: 1870s].

A rare anonymous manual for the general education of writers of classical Chinese from late Chosŏn Korea. The term “bamboo slips” originally referred to the material supports of writing in antiquity. In classical Chinese usage of later ages — and in this title — the phrase was used metonymically in reference to the implements and genres of classical Chinese writing.

This book covers the four “rites” of capping, marriage, funerals, and sacrifices. Each... More

76 folding leaves. Two kwŏn in one vol. Small folio (322 x 210 mm.), orig. semi-stiff yellow-brown patterned wrappers, new stitching. [Korea]: Preface dated 1855.

First edition of the very rare collected writings of Cho Ham-se (1607-90), a prominent Neo-Confucian scholar and poet best known by his pen name Oŭihŏn 五宜軒 (“Five-Propriety-Pavilion”). He was known for his ethical rigor, moral teaching, and reform-minded approach rooted in Confucian humanism.

Compiled and published in 1855 by his descendant Cho Ki-p’yŏng 趙基平, with a Preface by the late-Chosŏn judge Yi Chong-sang 李鍾祥 (1799-1870), and a Postscript by the scholar Yu Chi-ho 柳致皜 (1800-62)... More

Printed with wooden movable type. 71 folding leaves. Three kwŏn in one vol. Large 8vo, orig. patterned pale brown wrappers (a little frayed around extremities), new stitching. Korea: 1912.

First and only edition of poetry and prose collection by the late Chŏson scholar Cho Tal-sik (1813–50; pen name Yagam or “Small Hermitage”), posthumously compiled and printed by his grandson Cho Yeong-gyu in 1912. The work opens with a Preface by renowned scholar Song Byeong-hwa 宋炳華 (1852–1916), dated to the latter half of the ninth lunar month, 1912, and closes with a Postscript by Cho Tal-sik’s descendant Cho Seok-je 趙錫濟 (1848–1925)... More

41 folding leaves. Small folio (325 x 216 mm.), orig. yellow patterned wrappers, orig. stitching. Kyŏngsŏng 京城 (Seoul): 1928.

First edition of this rare work, printed by wooden movable type, that tells the life story of Chosŏn interpreter and diplomat (yŏkkwan) Hong Sun-ŏn 洪純彦 (1530-98). Impoverished in his youth, Hong made a name for himself with fluency in Chinese and a knack for international trade. The author of our book, Chŏng In-bo (1893-1950), was a prominent Korean historian and independence activist. In his Preface, acknowledging “the time gap” between Hong’s life and the time of writing, Chŏng notes: “I hope... More

92.5; 95 folding leaves. Two vols. Small folio, orig. yellow-brown patterned wrappers (some soiling to wrappers), old stitching. Chŏnju (today’s Jeonju): 1795 or possibly later.

A selection of 100 letters written by Zhu Xi (1130-1200), the great synthesizer of the philosophical school known as Neo-Confucianism. Zhu Xi, who lived in southeastern coastal China far from the center of power, became extremely influential in East Asia for centuries following his death. His interpretation of Neo-Confucianism (a metaphysically argued philosophy of the self, the family, and the state) became official orthodoxy in late imperial China and Chosŏn Korea, promulgated largely through the... More

20; 45.5; 9.5; 6.5; 2.5; 2 folding leaves. Six parts in one vol. 8vo (260 x 185 mm.), orig. printed self-wrappers, stapled. [Korea]: before Autumn 1940, probably late 1939-early 1940.

A fascinating printed government document, stamped on upper wrapper with a seal (“Gokuhi” 極秘) indicating this was a classified document.

During Japan’s colonization of Korea (1910-45), the occupiers installed a newly centralized and effective police apparatus, which included a massive influx of Japanese military and police. The suppression of nationalists, dissidents, religious leaders, and anarchists was severe. With Japan’s occupation of Manchuria and its growing war effort, the ruling... More

37 woodcut illus., some spanning several pages, all full-page. 74; 71 folding leaves. Two vols. Large 4to (334 x 202 mm.), orig. semi-stiff wrappers (a little worn) with orig. title slips on upper wrappers, new stitching. [Korea]: [after 1843].

A rare Korean, movable-type edition of this pioneering Chinese work on Western technology, ballistics, and artillery. The author Ding Gongchen, one of the leading gunnery and gunpowder experts of China, was also the first Chinese to correctly describe the steam mechanism in writing (in juan 4) and to construct a steam engine, illustrated here.

Scholars have remarked that the most valuable... More

54; 67; 84 folding leaves. Three vols. Large 8vo, orig. wrappers (wrappers rubbed & soiled). [Korea]: 1703.

First edition and very rare, with no copy in WorldCat. Han (style name: Siwa 是窩; 1646-87), was a Chosŏn official and writer. Due to factional conflicts within Chosŏn officialdom, Han was repeatedly dismissed and reinstated in office, holding a number of positions throughout his career. This collection of prose and verse was printed by Han’s son, probably Han Chi 韓祉 (1675-d. after 1727), in 1703. It contains poetry in several genres (rhapsodies and regulated verse), examination essays, and other writings. The collection contains... More

65 folding leaves. 4to, orig. semi-stiff wrappers (wrappers somewhat worn), old stitching. [Korea]: [1849-64].

An early, possibly first, edition of this rare anonymous manual for the general education of writers of classical Chinese from late Chosŏn Korea. The term “bamboo slips” originally referred to the material supports of writing in antiquity. In classical Chinese usage of later ages — and in this title — the phrase was used metonymically in reference to the implements and genres of classical Chinese writing.

This book covers the four “rites” of capping, marriage, funerals, and sacrifices. Each rite had specific genres associated with it... More

81 folding leaves. Two kwon in one vol. Large 8vo (310 x 208 mm.), orig. semi-stiff patterned wrappers (somewhat rubbed & soiled). Korea: 1886. $6500.00

First and only edition of this collection of poems and writings by the late-Chosŏn scholar Kim Hong-je (1661-1737). Compiled posthumously by Kim’s descendants Kim Rak-ku and Kim Nag-yuk in 1886, the book includes a Preface by Kim Yak-ryŏn and a Postscript by Kim Chŏl-su, both dated pyŏngsul (1886).

The first part contains Kim’s poems, letters, miscellaneous writings, and records, while the second serves as an appendix, including elegiac poems, biographical accounts, epitaphs, and a.... More