Technicians and Artisans of Heaven-and-Earth

Stephan N. Kory, Ph.D. (2012), Indiana University, is Professor of Chinese Studies at the University of Florida. He has published several articles on premodern China and Japan, including “Presence in Variety: De-Trivializing Female Diviners in Medieval China” (Nan Nü, 2016).

• AcknowledgmentsList of Tables and FiguresConventionsChinese Eras and DynastiesNorthern Dynasty and Sui RulersThe Twenty-Four Official Histories of ChinaTechnicians and Artisans in Weishu 91, Zhoushu 47, and Suishu 78Introduction: Aims, Sources, and Outline1 Aims2 Sources: Weishu 91, Zhoushu 47, and Suishu 783 Outline1 The Content, Compilation, and Aims of the Three Collections1 Nomenclature2 Genre3 Compilation and Sources4 Intent5 Concluding Remarks2 Divination, Medicine, and Crafts in Medieval Knowledge Organization Systems1 Early Foundational Models2 Medieval Systems3 Daoist and Buddhist Perspectives4 Daoist Perspectives5 Buddhist Perspectives6 Concluding Remarks3 Technicians and Artisans as Interpreters and Agents of Heaven-and-Earth1 Historical Overview2 Significance to the Central Court and Throne3 Significance to Peripheral Local Communities4 Concluding Remarks4 The Imperial Selection and Appointment of Technicians and Artisans1 The Mandate of Heaven and the Service of Its People2 Testing and Appointment as Essentials for Good Governance3 “Backdoors” into State Service: Reclusion, Itinerancy, and Special “Skills”4 Imperial Offices Featuring Techniques and Arts5 Conclusion5 The Reception and Transmission of Techniques and Arts1 The Reception of Techniques and Arts2 The Transmission of Techniques and Arts from Technicians and Artisans3 ConclusionTranslation 1: The Book of Wei “Arrayed Traditions of Technicians and Artisans”1 Introduction to Weishu 912 Biographical Traditions3 Conclusion to Weishu 91Translation 2: The Book of Zhou “Arrayed Traditions of Artisans and Technicians”1 Introduction to Zhoushu 472 Biographical Traditions3 Conclusion to Zhoushu 47Translation 3: The Book of Sui “Arrayed Traditions of Artisans and Technicians”1 Introduction to Suishu 782 Biographical Traditions3 Conclusion to Suishu 78Appendix: Suishu 78’s Six Types of Adepts and Twenty-Four ExemplarsGlossary: Techniques and Arts Featured in the Three CollectionsBibliographyIndex