Jianyang Masha Bookshops: How Northern Fujian Printing Shaped the Cultural Map of East Asia
Jianyang Masha Bookshops: How Northern Fujian Printing Shaped the Abstract In the trajectory of East Asian civilization, the towns of Masha and Shufang in Jianyang, Fujian, served as the “world’s factories” for knowledge. Drawing from the gazetteers of Northern Fujian, this article analyzes how Jianyang leveraged its unparalleled paper-making resources to become China’s largest private publishing hub, rivaling Lin’an and Sichuan during the Song, Yuan, and Ming dynasties. By delving into Song Dynasty Jianyang Book Carving Culture, the Ancient Northern Fujian Printing Center, and Jian-ben Book Overseas Trade, we reveal how woodblock editions from the deep mountains of Northern Fujian crossed turbulent seas to rest on shelves in Kyoto and Seoul, constructing a transnational East Asian cultural map. ...