Yuan Xingpei is Professor at the Department of Chinese Language and Literature and Director of the Institute for the Study of Traditional Chinese Culture at Peking University. He is a specialist in ancient Chinese literature and his research interests include ancient Chinese poetry, literature in the Wei, Jin, Sui and Tang dynasties, The Book of Odes and the study of Tao Yuanming. Yan Wenming is Professor at the School of Archaeology and Museology at Peking University and a specialist in Neolithic archaeology and the origins of ancient Chinese civilization. Zhang Chuanxi, Professor at the Department of History at Peking University, is a specialist in ancient Chinese history. His research interests include the social and economic history of ancient China and the history of the Yunnan people. Lou Yulie, Professor at the Department of Philosophy at Peking University, is a specialist in the history of ancient Chinese philosophy and the history of Chinese Buddhism.

'These volumes are an immense gift to China specialists and to the general reader anxious to learn something of China's history.' The Times Literary Supplement

• Volume I. Earliest Times – 221 BCE: Preface; General introduction; Introduction; 1. The dawn of Chinese civilization; 2. The beginnings of Chinese civilization; 3. The flourishing of civilization in the Shang and Zhou; 4. Brilliant bronze culture; 5. The application and production of bronze; 6. Capitals, cities and commerce of the Shang and Zhou; 7. The origins and early development of Chinese script; 8. Religion and belief in the Shang and Zhou periods; 9. The development of education and the flourishing of scholarship; 10. The birth of Chinese literature and art. Volume II. Qin, Han, Wei, Jin, and the Northern and Southern Dynasties: Preface; Introduction; 1. Creation and development of a multiethnic centralized state; 2. The establishment and transformation of bureaucratic government; 3. Growth of the feudal economy; 4. The position and evolution of Ruist learning; 5. Abtruse learning in the Wei and Jin dynasties; 6. The introduction of Buddhism and the appearance of Daoism; 7. The foundation and development of historiography and geography; 8. Literature of the Qin, Han, Wei and Northern and Southern dynasties; 9. The full flourishing of the Arts; 10. Systemization of science and technology; 11. Social life. Volume III. Sui and Tang to mid-Ming Dynasties (581–1525): Preface; Introduction; 1. Fusion of southern and northern cultures and unification of the empire; 2. The silk road and cultural exchange between China and foreign lands; 3. Economic prosperity and the shift of the economic center of gravity to the south; 4. The development of the civil service examination system and the rise of the new literati class; 5. The perfection of the civil official system; 6. Ruism and new developments in religion; 7. The expansion of scholarship and the florescence of education; 8. The evolution of the northern peoples and their contribution to Chinese civilization; 9. A new period in the history of Chinese-foreign relations; 10. Science and technology and the development of the concept of science; 11. The downward movement of literature and its full florescence; 12. Artistic style and the spirit of the times; 13. Social life. Volume IV. Late Ming and Qing Dynasties (1525–1911): Preface; Introduction; 1. Economic development; 2. Proto-enlightenment trends and new elements in political culture; 3. Science and technology; 4. The establishment and growth of a multiethnic state; 5. Political development and people's livelihood; 6. Cultural awareness and achievement in the early and mid-Qing dynasty; 7. The eastward flow of western learning and the spread of Chinese civilization; 8. Religious belief: concepts and practice; 9. New directions in literature and the arts; 10. Order and disruption in social life; 11. Education in schools and in society; 12. The building of core cities and the emergence of regional differences; 13. The push for reform: the birth of modern culture.

Yuan Xingpei is Professor at the Department of Chinese Language and Literature and Director of the Institute for the Study of Traditional Chinese Culture at Peking University. He is a specialist in ancient Chinese literature and his research interests include ancient Chinese poetry, literature in the Wei, Jin, Sui and Tang dynasties, The Book of Odes and the study of Tao Yuanming. Yan Wenming is Professor at the School of Archaeology and Museology at Peking University and a specialist in Neolithic archaeology and the origins of ancient Chinese civilization. Zhang Chuanxi, Professor at the Department of History at Peking University, is a specialist in ancient Chinese history. His research interests include the social and economic history of ancient China and the history of the Yunnan people. Lou Yulie, Professor at the Department of Philosophy at Peking University, is a specialist in the history of ancient Chinese philosophy and the history of Chinese Buddhism.

'These volumes are an immense gift to China specialists and to the general reader anxious to learn something of China's history.' The Times Literary Supplement

• Volume I. Earliest Times – 221 BCE: Preface; General introduction; Introduction; 1. The dawn of Chinese civilization; 2. The beginnings of Chinese civilization; 3. The flourishing of civilization in the Shang and Zhou; 4. Brilliant bronze culture; 5. The application and production of bronze; 6. Capitals, cities and commerce of the Shang and Zhou; 7. The origins and early development of Chinese script; 8. Religion and belief in the Shang and Zhou periods; 9. The development of education and the flourishing of scholarship; 10. The birth of Chinese literature and art. Volume II. Qin, Han, Wei, Jin, and the Northern and Southern Dynasties: Preface; Introduction; 1. Creation and development of a multiethnic centralized state; 2. The establishment and transformation of bureaucratic government; 3. Growth of the feudal economy; 4. The position and evolution of Ruist learning; 5. Abtruse learning in the Wei and Jin dynasties; 6. The introduction of Buddhism and the appearance of Daoism; 7. The foundation and development of historiography and geography; 8. Literature of the Qin, Han, Wei and Northern and Southern dynasties; 9. The full flourishing of the Arts; 10. Systemization of science and technology; 11. Social life. Volume III. Sui and Tang to mid-Ming Dynasties (581–1525): Preface; Introduction; 1. Fusion of southern and northern cultures and unification of the empire; 2. The silk road and cultural exchange between China and foreign lands; 3. Economic prosperity and the shift of the economic center of gravity to the south; 4. The development of the civil service examination system and the rise of the new literati class; 5. The perfection of the civil official system; 6. Ruism and new developments in religion; 7. The expansion of scholarship and the florescence of education; 8. The evolution of the northern peoples and their contribution to Chinese civilization; 9. A new period in the history of Chinese-foreign relations; 10. Science and technology and the development of the concept of science; 11. The downward movement of literature and its full florescence; 12. Artistic style and the spirit of the times; 13. Social life. Volume IV. Late Ming and Qing Dynasties (1525–1911): Preface; Introduction; 1. Economic development; 2. Proto-enlightenment trends and new elements in political culture; 3. Science and technology; 4. The establishment and growth of a multiethnic state; 5. Political development and people's livelihood; 6. Cultural awareness and achievement in the early and mid-Qing dynasty; 7. The eastward flow of western learning and the spread of Chinese civilization; 8. Religious belief: concepts and practice; 9. New directions in literature and the arts; 10. Order and disruption in social life; 11. Education in schools and in society; 12. The building of core cities and the emergence of regional differences; 13. The push for reform: the birth of modern culture.