The book classifications offer a rough reflection of the book publication and academic development before the Tang Dynasty. The “Four Classifications” system in Bibliography of Chronicles of the Sui Dynasty exerted a tremendous influence on later book categories， the typical one of which， which is alos the most comprehensive， abundant and influential， is General Catalogue of Four Treasuries.
The General Catalogue of Siku Quanshus， also called the General Index of the Complete Works of the Siku Quanshu， was linked to the compiling of Siku Quanshu during the Qing Dynasty， which is the summary， written by the editors， finalized by the chief editor Jiyun (who also called himself Xiaolan， 1724–1805) and authorized by the Emperor， to include the content， the dynasty of writing， the writer’s biography and the original version of the books. The book records 3，461 kinds of ancient works in 79，309 volumes in Siku Quanshu， and 6，793 kinds in 93，550 volumes not included in Siku Quanshu， which basically includes ancient Chinese works before the Period of Emperor Qianlong of the Qing Dynasty. With 200 volumes， the book can be divided into 4 classifications， 44 categories and 66 minor-catalogues.
“Jing”： Yi， Shu， Shi， Li， Chunqiu， Xiaojing， Wujing， Sishu， Yue and Xiaoxue in 10 minor-catalogues.
“Shi”： Zhengshi， Biannianshi， Jishibenmoshi， Zashi， Bieshi， Zhaolingzhouyi， Zhuanji， Shichao， Zaiji， Shiling， Dili， Zhiguan， Zhengshu， Mulu and Shiping in 15 minor-catalogues.
“Zi”： Confucianism， Bingjia， Fajia， Nongjia， Shijia， astronomy， Shushu， Yishu， Pulu， Zajia， Leishu， Xiaoshuojia， Yijia and Daojia in 14 minor-catalogues.
“Ji”： Chuci， Bieji， Zongji， Shiwenping and Ciqu in 5 minorcatalogues.
The General Catalogue of Siku Quanshu， featuring a complete collection of traditional book-cataloguing with a total order for each category， a short preface for each catalogue and an abstract for each book， is an agglomeration of the Four Classifications in ancient books. With a huge space， a comprehensive institution and abundant substance， it is a summary for the academy in China before the 18th century and has a certain academic value.
Printing and Transcription： Reproduction of Ancient Publications
The invention of movable-type print is a significant event in the development of human society， which has greatly sped up the development of culture around the world. As the first country to invent movable-type print， printing technique in ancient China included three distinct types： block-printing， movabletype printing and registration printing， of which block-printing was the earliest and most popular. Following the invention of movable-type printing， China’s printing industry bloomed but the tradition of transcription remained， giving the new period of printing a traditional flavor.
Engraving printing
Engraving printing was also called whole-page printing or block printing. Pear wood or Chinese jujube tree wood was usually used to make ablock， and then thin paper with characters written in reverse (a mirror-image) was stuck on the surface of the block. At this moment it was only necessary to ink the base slab and bring it into contact with the paper or cloth to achieve an acceptable print. In ancient times， this technique was called woodblock printing because people pressed the paper on the surface of the prepared and inked woodblock. Based on current evidence， printing technique was invented in China， not later than between the 7th and the 8th century (during the early and the glorious period of the Tang Dynasty) and most likely at the turn of the 7th century A.D.
In the existing documents from Tang Dynasty， there are many records that describe the invention and the application of printing during the Tang Dynasty. In the preface of Bai Juyi’s (779–831) Chang Qing Collection (《长庆集》 ) in the 4th year of Emperor Tang Mu， poet Yuan Zhen wrote that Bai Juyi and Yuan Zhen’s poems were published in quantities， sold in bookstores and widely read. In 835， the government banned private printing because private publishing workshops printed a huge number of calendars. All these prove that block printing was widely used in the 9th century； so it is possible to infer that block printing was invented earlier.
All existing early prints were made during the Tang Dynasty. The two best-known examples are Diamond Sutra， unearthed in Dunhuang， China in 868. This is the earliest wood block print in existence. The Diamond Sutra is a complete scroll with simple but heavy-colored illustrations， delicate painting， skilled cutting， even ink and clear printing. It was apparently made with a mature technique and is definitely not the output early stage printing.
The other is the Chinese character print from Empress Wu Zetian’s period (690–705) of the Tang Dynasty. It was unearthed from Korea and Japan in 20th century. It inclues the Pure Light Dharani Sutra unearthed in Sarira pagoda in the Pulguksa Temple， Gyeongju， Korea and the Million Sutra made before 770 A.D. under the command of Empress Shotoku. It was kept in Horyuji in Yamatoji， Japan and the London museum.
All these findings in Korea and Japan show that Chinese woodblock printing developed at a relatively higher level and the quality and scale was good enough for international spread.
Movable-type printing
Movable-type printing is a system of printing and typography that uses movable components to reproduce the elements of a document (usually individual characters or punctuation) by making single tablets in lines. Tablets can be separated after use and rearranged for another printing.
Bi Sheng (？–1051) invented ceramic movable type， the earliest movable type known， during the Northern Song Dynasty (960– 1127). The invention is described in detail in Dream Pool Essays (《梦 溪笔谈》 ) by Shen Kuo (1031– 1095)， from which learn about the production method of movable type and the process of movabletype printing.
